Novel Indole-Tethered Chromene Derivatives: Synthesis, Cytotoxic Properties, and Key Computational Insights

Indole-tethered chromene derivatives were synthesised in a one-pot multicomponent reaction using N-alkyl-1H-indole-3-carbaldehydes, 5,5-dimethylcyclohexane-1,3-dione, and malononitrile, catalysed by DBU at 60–65 °C in a short reaction time. The benefits of the methodology include non-toxicity, an uncomplicated set-up procedure, a faster reaction time, and high yields. Moreover, the anticancer properties of the synthesised compounds were tested against selected cancer cell lines. The derivatives 4c and 4d displayed very good cytotoxic activity, with IC₅₀ values ranging from 7.9 to 9.1 µM. Molecular docking revealed the potent derivatives have good binding affinity towards tubulin protein, better than the control, and the molecular dynamic simulations further demonstrated the stability of ligand-receptor interactions. Moreover, the derivatives followed all the drug-likeness filters.