Simple route to ferrocenylalkyl nucleobases. Antitumor activityin vivo

Ferrocenylalkyl nucleobases (1–14) were prepared via the reaction of the α-(hydroxy)alkyl ferrocenes FcCHR(OH) (Fc = ferrocenyl; R = H, Me, Et, Ph) with thymine, cytosine, iodo-cytosine and adenine in DMSO at 100 °C, yields being 50–80%. The antitumor activities of ferrocenylmethyl thymine (1) against solid tumor models, carcinoma 755 (Ca755) and Lewis lung carcinoma (LLC) were studied in vivo. Therapeutic synergism of antitumor activity against LLC was demonstrated in the case of combined application of compound 1 with anticancer drug cyclophosphamide. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.