Synthesis, antimicrobial and antiviral activity of substituted benzimidazoles

Abstract

In the present study we have synthesized (4-nitrophenyl)-[2-(substituted phenyl)-benzoimidazol-1-yl]-methanones, (2-bromophenyl)-[2-(substituted phenyl)-benzoimidazol-1-yl]-methanone analogues (1–14) and evaluated them for their antimicrobial and antiviral potential. The results of antimicrobial screening indicated that none of the synthesized compounds were effective against the tested bacterial strains. Compounds 3, 11, 13 and compounds 5, 11, 12 were found to be active against Aspergillus niger and Candida albicans respectively, and may be further developed as antifungal agents. Furthermore, evaluation against a panel of different viruses pointed out the selective activity of compounds 5 and 6 against vaccinia virus and Coxsackie virus B4.

Keywords::

• Substituted benzimidazoles
• antifungal activity
• antiviral activity

Acknowledgements

We would like to thank Mrs. Leentje Persoons, Rega Institute for Medical Research, Belgium for her excellent technical assistance in the evaluation of antiviral activity.

Declaration of interest: The authors report no conflicts of interest. The authors alone are responsible for the content and writing of the paper.