Effects of liquid crystallinity on anticancer activity of benzoate derivatives possessing a terminal hydroxyl group

To elucidate the effects of liquid crystallinity on the anticancer activity of a small mesogenic molecule, we prepared some benzoate derivatives possessing a terminal hydroxyl group and investigated their anti-proliferative activity against A549 human lung cancer cells. We also observed their molecular aggregation properties using polarised optical microscopy, differential scanning microscopy and dynamic light scattering. We discuss the structure–property relation of the benzoate derivatives. The results are explained in terms of the octanol–water partition coefficient, topological polar surface area (tPSA) and molecular aggregation ability.