Novel Cytocidal Substituted Phenyl 4-(2-Oxoimidazolidin-1-yl) Benzenesulfonates and Benzenesulfonamides with Affinity to the Colchicine-Binding Site: Is the Phenyl 2-Imidazolidinone Moiety a New Haptophore for the Design of New Antimitotics?

Phenyl 4-(2-oxoimidazolidin-1-yl)benzenesulfonates (PIB-SOs) and phenyl 4-(2-oxoimidazolidin1-yl)benzenesulfonamides (PIB-SAs) are new, potent combretastatin A-4 (CA-4) analogs designed on the basis of their common phenyl 2-imidazolidone moiety. This phenyl 2-imidazolidone group is a bioisosteric equivalent of the trimethoxyphenyl group also found in colchicine, podophyllotoxin and several other ligands of the colchicine-binding site (C-BS). In this study, we investigate the interactions involved in the binding of PIB-SO and PIB-SA into the C-BS. We describe three distinct pockets (I, II, and III) as key structural elements involved in the interactions between the Corresponding author.