Computer-aided anticancer drug design: In vitro and in silico studies of new iminocoumarin derivative

•The characterization studies were performed with NMR, FTIR, MS and UV spectral data on a new synthesizing iminocoumarin derivative (7-hydroxy-8-(((1-hydroxy-3-phenylpropan-2- yl)imino)methyl)-4-(trifluoromethyl)-2H-chromen-2-one).•The ability of the iminocoumarin derivative to bind to CT-DNA was characterized by UV–vis spectroscopy and molecular docking analysis.•Cytotoxic activity of the compound on MCF-7, HeLa and Mat-Lylu cell lines and mutagenic activity by Ames/Salmonella assay were determined.•The antioxidant activity of the compound was investigated.•The physicochemical and pharmacokinetic properties of the synthesized compound were implemented by ADMET analysis. In this study, the aim was computer-aided design of a new anti-cancer drug molecule. For this purpose, 7-hydroxy-8-(((1-hydroxy-3-phenylpropan-2-yl)imino)methyl)-4-(trifluoromethyl)-2H-chromen-2-one (D3) was synthesized by the condensation reaction. Its characterization studies were performed by NMR, FTIR, MS and UV spectral data. Anti-cancer activity of D3 was examined on MCF-7, HeLa and Mat-Lylu cell lines, and it was found that D3 showed cytotoxic activity in all cell lines. Mutagenity of D3 was determined by Ames/Salmonella assay, and it was found that it had no mutagenic effect on S. typhimurium TA98 and TA100 strains. Antioxidant activity of D3 was also revealed. Besides, the interaction of D3 with DNA was investigated by the UV titration method. Experimental results showed D3 binds to DNA by intercalation or groove linking. Moreover, molecular docking approach was used to elucidate the atomic level interaction between the synthesized compound and DNA; thus, the atomic level behavior of the compound in the binding site of DNA was characterized and its binding properties were determined. In addition, the physicochemical and pharmacokinetic properties of the synthesized compound were performed using ADMET and frontier orbital analyses. In conclusion, according to both in vitro and in silico findings, it can be suggested that D3 may be used as a new anti-cancer drug for breast, cervical and prostate cancers. [Display omitted]