Abstract
Four new curcuminoid (1,7‐diaryl‐1,6‐heptadiene‐3,5‐diones) analogues and their vanadyl(IV), cobalt(II), nickel(II) and copper(II) chelates of ML2 stoichiometry have been synthesized and characterized by electronic, IR, 1H NMR, ESR and mass spectral data. The in vitro and in vivo antitumour activity of these 1,7‐diarylheptanoids and their copper(II) chelates showed that chelation remarkably enhanced cytotoxic activity and other antitumour properties.
Acknowledgments
We thank Dr. Girija Kuttan and the Director of the Amala Cancer Research Centre, Trichur, Kerala, India, for their help in the antitumour studies.