Synthesis and biological evaluation of atropisomeric tetrahydroisoquinolines overcoming docetaxel resistance in triple-negative human breast cancer cells

•Novel atropisomeric tetrahydroisoquinolines were selectively synthesized.•The SAR study led to the discovery of (R)-1r, which displayed potent antiproliferative activities.•The proliferation of docetaxel-resistant triple-negative human breast cancer cells was effectively inhibited by (R)-1r.•(R)-1r induced apoptosis, which was caused by the downregulation of p-STAT3.