Asterriquinone (ARQ, 1a) is an antitumor metabolite of Aspergillus terreus IFO 6123. To gain insight into the structure-activity relationships of ARQ, a series of chemically modified derivatives (1-6), the ARQ analogues (be) and the 2, 5-dihydroxy-p-bezoquinone analogues (fh), were prepared, and cytotoxic acitivity against mouse leukemia P388 cells investigated. Results indicated that: 1) at least one hydroxy group or acetoxy group in the p- ...