Substituted benzo [c] phenanthridine alkaloids and, more recently, benzacridine derivatives have demonstrated activity as topoisomerase I poisons and were shown to possess antitumor activity. 1, 2 In view of our interest in furthering the structure activity associated with these antitumor compounds, we explored synthetic methods to provide for variously substituted phenanthridine and benzo [i] phenanthridines. Preparation of the N-oxide of ...
