RT journal article T1 Analogues of Natural Chalcones as Efficient Inhibitors of AKR1C3 A1 Möller, Gabriele A1 Temml, Veronika A1 Cala Peralta, Antonio A1 Gruet, Océane A1 Richomme, Pascal A1 Seraphin, Denis A1 Viault, Guillaume A1 Kraus, Luisa A1 Huber-Cantonati, Petra A1 Schopfhauser, Elisabeth A1 Pachmayr, Johanna A1 Tokarz, Janina A1 Schuster, Daniela A1 Helesbeux, Jean-Jacques A1 Allen Dyar, Kenneth A2 Química Orgánica K1 chalcone K1 aldo-keto reductase K1 cancer K1 AKR1C3 K1 17β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase K1 3α-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase K1 structure-activity relationship AB Naturally occurring substances are valuable resources for drug development. In this respect, chalcones are known to be antiproliferative agents against prostate cancer cell lines through various mechanisms or targets. Based on the literature and preliminary results, we aimed to study and optimise the efficiency of a series of chalcones to inhibit androgen-converting AKR1C3, known to promote prostate cancer. A total of 12 chalcones with different substitution patterns were synthesised. Structure–activity relationships associated with these modifications on AKR1C3 inhibition were analysed by performing enzymatic assays and docking simulations. In addition, the selectivity and cytotoxicity of the compounds were assessed. In enzymatic assays, C-6′ hydroxylated derivatives were more active than C-6′ methoxylated derivatives. In contrast, C-4 methylation increased activity over C-4 hydroxylation. Docking results supported these findings with the most active compounds fitting nicely in the binding site and exhibiting strong interactions with key amino acid residues. The most effective inhibitors were not cytotoxic for HEK293T cells and selective for 17β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenases not primarily involved in steroid hormone metabolism. Nevertheless, they inhibited several enzymes of the steroid metabolism pathways. Favourable substitutions that enhanced AKR1C3 inhibition of chalcones were identified. This study paves the way to further develop compounds from this series or related flavonoids with improved inhibitory activity against AKR1C3. PB MDPI SN 2218-1989 YR 2022 FD 2022-01-21 LK http://hdl.handle.net/10498/35222 UL http://hdl.handle.net/10498/35222 LA eng DS Repositorio Institucional de la Universidad de Cádiz RD 07-nov-2026