Semisynthesis and biological activities of derivatives of cyclocommunol from <i>Artocarpus altilis</i> fruit peel

<i>Artocarpus altilis</i> (breadfruit) is an economically important species of the Moraceae family found throughout the tropics. While breadfruit pulp is widely used and processed into various food products, the peel waste is currently underutilised. Our chemical study of breadfruit peel has led to the isolation of the major constituent cyclocommunol (<b>1</b>). Using <b>1</b> as the starting material, we synthesised nine cyclocommunol derivatives (<b>2</b>–<b>10</b>) and tested their antibacterial and antitumor activities. Compounds <b>1</b>, <b>3, 4</b>, and <b>9</b> have weak antibacterial activity against several Gram-(+) and Gram-(–) bacteria. In addition, compounds <b>7</b> and <b>9</b> showed moderate cytotoxicity against the MCF-7 breast cancer cell line, whereas compound <b>4</b> showed comparable cytotoxicity against the NCI-H460 lung cancer cell line. The study showed that the underutilised breadfruit peel waste may be used as a source of compounds with pharmaceutical potential.