Toxicity of phenolipids: Protocatechuic acid alkyl esters trigger disruption of mitochondrial membrane potential and caspase activation in macrophages.

Phenolipids are a class of phenolic compounds with a lipidic moiety that have been receiving increasing attention due to their promising biological activities; however data regarding their toxicity and mechanism of action are scarce. A series of 11 phenolipids consisting of alkyl esters derivatives of the natural molecule protocatechuic acid was synthesized and evaluated against a panel of cancer and non-cancer cell lines [...]