Synthesis, Characterization, and Antimicrobial Evaluation of Sulfonamides Containing N-Acyl Moieties Catalyzed by Bismuth(III) Salts Under Both Solvent and Solvent-Free Conditions

Abstract

Efficient N-acylation of sulfonamides with both readily available carboxylic acid chlorides and anhydrides has been carried out with catalysis by bismuth(III) salts including BiCl₃ and Bi (OTf)₃. The reactions proceed rapidly in both heterogeneous and solvent-free conditions and afforded the corresponding N-acylsulfonamides in good to excellent yields. The mild reaction conditions and low toxicity of bismuth salts make this procedure attractive and in close agreement with the goals of green chemistry. Some of the synthesized compounds were evaluated in vitro as antimicrobial agents against representative strains of Gram-positive (Staphylococcus aureus ATCC 25922, clinical strains of Staphylococcus aureus VISA and Enterococcus spp.) and Gram-negative bacteria (Pseudomonas aeruginosa ATCC 27853, clinical strains of Klebsiella pneumonia and Escherichia coli) and as antifungal agents against Candida albicans (clinically isolated) by both disc diffusion and minimal inhibition concentration (MIC) methods. All these bacteria and fungi studied were screened against some antibiotics to compare with our chemicals' zone diameters.

Keywords:

• Antimicrobial activity
• bismuth(iii) salts
• N-acylation
• N-acylsulfonamide
• solvent-free

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

We thank Dr. Taki for his kind help and the Islamic Azad University of Shahreza Research Council for their partial support. We gratefully acknowledge the Kermanshah University of Medical Sciences Research Council for financial support.

Notes

^a Minutes.

^b Isolated yield (%).

^c In hours.

^a Minutes.

^b Isolated yield (%).