Synthesis and Cytotoxicity Assessment of 2-(4-Fluorophenyl)-N-halophenylacetamide Derivatives as Anticancer Agents

Cancer is a group of diseases characterized by uncontrolled proliferation of abnormal cells. Because of the severe side effects and resistance to the traditional chemotherapeutic agents, the necessity for discovery of new anticancer drugs is a crucial topic. In the present study we synthesized new derivatives of 2-(4-Fluorophenyl)-N-halophenylacetamide and assessed their cytotoxicity against five cancerous cell lines consisted of PC3 (Prostate cancer), Hela (Cervical cancer), ACHN (Renal cell carcinoma), MCF-7 (Breast cancer) and HL-60 (Promyelocytic leukemia). All compounds demonstrated better cytotoxic activity towards PC3 cell line compared to other cell lines. Compound 2b showed the best cytotoxic effect in this series (IC50 = 102 µM/L). Replacement of butyl chain with phenyl ring led to the increase and improvement of the cytotoxic effects.