Structural requirement(s) of N-phenylthioureas and benzaldehyde thiosemicarbazones as inhibitors of melanogenesis in melanoma B 16 cells

In order to define the structural requirements of phenylthiourea (PTU), a series of thiourea and thiosemicarbazone analogs were prepared and evaluated as inhibitors of melanogenesis in melanoma B16 cells. The most potent analog was 2-(4-tert-butylbenzylidene)hydrazinecarbothioamide (1u) with an IC(50) value of 2.7 microM in inhibition of melanogenesis. The structure for potent inhibitory activity of these derivatives are required with the direct connection of pi-planar structure to thiourea without steric hinderance in PTU derivatives and the hydrophobic substituent at para position in case of semicarbazones.