Does the Novel Class of (2R, 4S)-N-(2, 5-Difluorophenyl)-4-Hydroxy-1-(2, 2, 2-Trifluoroacetyl) Pyrrolidine-2-Carboxamide's Have Any Effect on Cell Viability and Apoptosis of Human Hepatocellular Carcinoma Cells?

The hepatocellular carcinoma is believed to be the third cause of death due to cancer, worldwide. A new derivative of the (2R,4S)-N-(2,5-difluorophenyl)-4-hydroxy-1-(2,2,2-trifluoroacetyl) pyrrolidine-2-carboxamide compound were synthesized, employing a facile one-pot reaction of trans-4-hydroxy proline and N-(2,5-difluorophenyl)-2,2,2-trifluoroacetimidoyl chloride in the presence of TiO2 as catalysts and sodium hydrogen carbonate.
Therefore, in the present study we aimed to explore whether if the above new derivative pyrrolidine-2-carboxamide can affect cellular viability and apoptosis in cancerous HepG2 cell line.
HepG2 cells were cultured in RPMI 1640 medium containing fetal bovine serum. Cultured cells were then treated with 7.8 µM to 125 µM of pyrrolidine-2-carboxamide. The toxicity of the compound was assayed by MTT method and detection of annexin V signal, using a flowcytometry system.
We found the pyrrolidine-2-carboxamide derived inhibition of HepG2 cells following a dose and time dependent fashion. The highest numbers of dead cells were observed in 125 µM dose, after 48 hours of treatment. Flow cytometric analysis also revealed that massive numbers of apoptotic cells were detectable in response to treatment with this pyrrolidine derivative.
Overall, according to the data presented here, the pyrrolidine-2-carboxamide could possibly control cellular viability/apoptosis. Thus it can potentially be concerned as a useful therapeutic tool for hepatocellular carcinoma treatment.