Design and synthesis of novel xyloketal derivatives and their vasorelaxing activities in rat thoracic aorta and angiogenic activities in zebrafish angiogenesis screen.

A novel series of xyloketal derivatives (1-21) were designed and prepared. The majority of the compounds demonstrated vasorelaxation action on 60 mM KCl-induced contractions rat isolated aortic rings in a concentration-dependent manner, and the action is mediated by both endothelium-independent and endothelium-dependent mechanisms. Compounds 9, 12, 13, 14, 15, and 19 showed higher vasorelaxation activities comparing with the lead compound 3. In addition, these derivatives had potential protective action against oxLDL-induced endothelial oxidative injury and enhanced NO production in HUVECs without toxic effects. The NO release was completely inhibited by eNOS inhibitor L-NAME. Furthermore, 3 significantly promoted the angiogenesis in zebrafish in a concentration-dependent manner at 0.1, 1, and 10 muM. Compounds 9, 12, 14, 16, 20, and 21 exhibited stronger angiogenic activities than 3. Therefore, xyloketal derivatives are unique compounds with multiple pharmacological properties and may have potential implications in the treatment of cardiovascular diseases.