One-Pot Synthesis and Evaluation of Antioxidative Stress and Anticancer Properties of an Active Chromone Derivative

Chromones are the structural building blocks of several natural flavonoids. The synthesis of chromones, which contain a hydroxy group on the ring, presents some challenges. We used the one-pot method to synthesize ten chromone derivatives and two related compounds using modified Baker-Venkataraman reactions. The structures were confirmed using FT-IR, H NMR, C NMR, and HRMS. The in vitro antioxidant assay revealed that compounds , , , and had potent antioxidant activity and that all these synthesized compounds, except those containing nitro groups, were harmless to normal cells. In addition, compounds , , , , , , and had anticancer activity. Compounds and were used to investigate the mechanism of anticancer activity. Both and induced a slightly early apoptotic effect but significantly impacted the S phase in the cell cycle. The effect on cell invasion indicates that both compounds significantly inhibited the growth of cervical cancer cells. A chromone scaffold possesses effective chemoprotective and antioxidant properties, making it a promising candidate for antioxidant and future cancer treatments.