Synthesis of Novel 2-Thiouracil-5-Sulfonamide Derivatives as Potent Inducers of Cell Cycle Arrest and CDK2A Inhibition Supported by Molecular Docking.

In an effort to discover potent anticancer agents, 2-thiouracil-5-sulfonamides derivatives were designed and synthesized. The cytotoxic activity of all synthesized compounds was investigated against four human cancer cell lines viz A-2780 (ovarian), HT-29 (colon), MCF-7 (breast), and HepG2 (liver). Compounds -, and showed promising anticancer activity and significant inhibition of CDK2A. Moreover, they were all safe when tested on WI38 normal cells with high selectivity index for cancer cells. Flow cytometric analysis for the most active compound displayed induction of cell growth arrest at G1/S phase (A-2780 cells), S phase (HT-29 and MCF-7 cells), and G2/M phase (HepG2 cells) and stimulated the apoptotic death of all cancer cells. Moreover, was able to cause cycle arrest indirectly through enhanced expression of cell cycle inhibitors p21 and p27. Finally, molecular docking of compound endorsed its proper binding to CDK2A, which clarifies its potent anticancer activity.