“…4,32−35 Previous studies of the structure−activity relationships (SARs) of andrographolide have shown that esters on hydroxyl groups present at the C-3, C-19, and C-14 positions enhance pharmacological activities of andrographolide (1) relevant to its anticancer activity; e.g., 14-acetylandrographolide, 36 8,17epoxy-3,19,14 ester andrographolide, 37 14-cinnamoyl-8,17epoxy-andrographolide (DRF-3188), 37,38 andrographolide-14α-O-iodoacetate, 39 14-succinylandrographolide, 40 and 14α-O- (1,4-disubstituted-1,2,3-triazolyl) are biologically active synthetically modified ester derivatives of andrographolide (Figure 1). 41 Realizing the fact that introduction of an ester group at positions C-3 and C-19 enhances the cytotoxicity of the parent molecule (1) and that no attempt has so far been made to link ester at the C-17 position of andrographolide (1), we therefore have decided to introduce an ester at the C-17 position (site selective) without affecting the other functionalities of andrographolide such as the α-alkylidene-γ-butyrolactone moiety and C-3, C-19 hydroxyl functional group. In this research work, we report site-selective synthesis of C-17 ester derivatives of andrographolide, and further, all synthesized compounds were in vitro tested for their ability to inhibit the growth of four human cancer cell lines: A594 (lung carcinoma), PC3 (prostate carcinoma), MCF-7 (breast carcinoma), and HCT-116 (colon carcinoma).…”