Cytotoxic bis-3,4-dihydro-beta-carbolines and bis-beta-carbolines.

Ten bis-beta-carboline 1, 2 and bis-3,4-dihydro-beta-carboline 3, 4 derivatives, linked between carbons 1 and 1' by a polymethylene spacer, were synthesized from bistryptamine amides 9, 10. Some of them display a micromolar IC50 towards L-1210 cells.