Crystal structures and antibacterial properties of Cu(II) complexes containing an unsymmetrical N₂O Schiff base ligand and bidentate N-donor heterocyclic co-ligands

Abstract

Three new Cu(II) Schiff base complexes with bidentate N-donor heterocyclic co-ligands, 2,2'-bipyridine (1), 1,10-phenanthroline (2), and 2,9-dimethyl-1,10-phenanthroline (3), were synthesized and characterized by FT-IR and UV-vis spectroscopy. Molecular structures of [C₂₀H₂₁CuN₄O](ClO₄) (1) and [C₂₄H₂₅CuN₄O](ClO₄) (3) were characterized by single-crystal X-ray crystallography. The Schiff base ligand is an N₂O-type ligand, which is the mono-condensed form of the reaction between 1,3-propanediamine and salicylaldehyde. The antibacterial activities of these complexes were investigated against one gram positive and four gram negative bacteria. Considerable antibacterial activity was obtained against both gram type bacteria. Complexes 2 and 3 with 1,10-phenanthroline and 2,9-dimethyl-1,10-phenanthroline, respectively, showed better antibacterial activity compared to 1 which has the 2,2'-bipyridine co-ligand.

Keywords:

• Copper
• Schiff base
• N-donor heterocyclic co-ligands
• antibacterial

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.