# Evaluation of Anticancer Activity of Novel Sulfanyl-Substituted Hydrazone Compounds in Hepatocellular Carcinoma: In Vitro, In Silico, and In Ovo Studies

## TL;DR

This study evaluates new hydrazone compounds for their anticancer effects, particularly on liver cancer, using lab, computational, and chick embryo experiments.

## Contribution

The novel sulfanyl-substituted hydrazone compound 2c shows promising anticancer activity against hepatocellular carcinoma.

## Key findings

- Compound 2c exhibited significant antigrowth effects on HepG2 liver cancer cells.
- In silico analysis showed compound 2c has strong binding affinity to DNA repair-related targets.
- In ovo assays confirmed the compound's antitumor and antiangiogenic potential.

## Abstract

Hepatocellular carcinoma is one of the hardest-to-treat
cancer
types, although some recent developments have been made. Therefore,
the discovery of new treatment options is still desperately desired.
In this study, some novel sulfanyl-substituted hydrazone compounds 2a–2h were synthesized and characterized using spectroscopic
techniques (1H NMR, 13C NMR, IR, and HRMS).
Then, hydrazone compounds were tested on four different cancer types
(lung, hepatocellular, breast, and colon carcinoma) and one nonmalignant
cell line. Among these hydrazone compounds and tested cancer types,
compound 2c resulted in a satisfactory antigrowth effect
against hepatocellular carcinoma, the HepG2 cell line. Further, in
ovo antitumor and antiangiogenic assays were also performed together
with the in silico calculations employed by target predictions of
compound 2c by a tool called Way2Drug and then followed
by binding affinity calculations to those targets by AutoDock Vina.
The range of binding scores of compound 2c was calculated
between −4 and −8.6 kcal/mol for those targets that
were suggested to be involved in a local protein–protein interaction
clustering on base excision repair and DNA topological change. It
has been found that compound 2c might deserve further
attention (e.g., animal studies for proof-of-concept) as a novel anticancer
compound for the treatment of liver cancer.