Promising Schiff bases in antiviral drug design and discovery

Advances in Coordination Chemistry of Schiff Base Complexes: A Journey from Nanoarchitectonic Design to Biomedical Applications

Since the discovery of Schiff bases over one and a half centuries ago, there has been tremendous research activity in the design of various Schiff bases and examination of their diverse structures and versatile applications. This family of compounds has continued to captivate many research groups due to the simplicity of their synthesis through the condensation of amines with carbonyl compounds. While conventional synthesis has been the most widely used, green synthetic methodologies have been also explored for this reaction, including sonication, microwave-assisted, natural acid-catalyzed and mechanochemical syntheses as well as utilizing ionic liquid solvents or deep eutectic solvents. Schiff bases have been utilized as excellent ligands for coordination to transition metals and late transition metals (lanthanides and actinides). These Schiff base compounds can be mono-, di-, or polydentate ligands. The aim of this review is to examine the biological applications of Schiff base complexes over the past decade with particular focus on their antimicrobial, antiviral, anticancer, antidiabetic, and anti-inflammatory activity. Schiff base complexes have been found effective in combating bacterial and fungal infections with numerous examples in the literature. The review addressed this area by focusing on the very recent examples while using tables to summarize the vast breadth of research according to the metallic moieties. Viruses have continued to be a target of many researchers in light of their continuous mutations and impact on human health, and therefore some examples of Schiff base complexes with antiviral activity are described. Cancer continues to be among the leading causes of death worldwide. In this article, the use of Schiff base complexes for, and the mechanisms associated with, their anticancer activity are highlighted. The production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) or intercalation with DNA base pairs leading to cell cycle arrest were the main mechanisms described. While there have been some efforts made to use Schiff base complexes as antidiabetic or anti-inflammatory agents, there are limited examples when compared with antimicrobial and anticancer studies. The conclusion of this review highlights the emerging areas of research and future perspectives with an emphasis on the potential uses of Schiff bases in the treatment of infectious and noninfectious diseases.

A Novel Rhodamine Functionalized Schiff Base Type Ratiometric Fluorescent Chemosensor for the Sensing of Hg2+ Ions; Experimental and Theoretical Approach

A new Rhodamine functionalised Schiff Base sensor 3',6'-bis(diethylamino)-2-((4-hydroxybenzylidene)amino)spiro[isoindoline-1,9'-xanthen]-3-one (SBRB1) was designed and synthesized. The recognition ability of sensor SBRB1 towards Hg2+ was studied by using UV-Vis and fluorescence spectroscopy. The fluorescence results showed that the sensor SBRB1 has specific selectivity as well as sensitivity towards Hg2+ among other competitive metal ions as the fluorescence intensity at 479 nm quenched only in the presence of Hg2+. This sensitivity towards Hg2+ was due to the chelation between ligand and Hg2+. From the fluorescence titration the binding constant and detection limit of SBRB1:Hg2+ complex were calculated and found to be 5.114× 106 M-1 and 2.91× 10-5 M respectively. It showed The 1:1 complexation between SBRB1 and Hg2+ which was conformed from the DFT and TD-DFT study of SBRB1 in both solvent and gas phase.

Chitosan-Based Schiff Bases (CSBs) and Their Metal Complexes: Promising Antimicrobial Agents

The scientific interest in the chemical modification of chitosan to increase its solubility and application has led to its conjugation with Schiff bases, which are interesting scaffolds endowed with diverse biological properties. The resultant chitosan-based Schiff bases (CSBs) are widely studied in scientific literature due to the myriad of activities exerted, both catalytic and biological, including anticancer, anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and especially antimicrobial ones. Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is one of the major public health challenges of the twenty-first century because it represents a threat to the prevention and treatment of a growing number of bacterial, parasitic, viral, and fungal infections that are no longer treatable with the available drugs. Thus, in this review, we present a brief outline of the biological activities of CSBs as well as their complexes with metals, with a particular focus on the recent literature regarding the antimicrobial effect of these captivating derivatives.

Discovery and synthesis of novel phenoxyacetate ester Schiff base α-glucosidase inhibitors

A phenoxyacetate ester Schiff base lead compound 4a (ZINC20073984) was firstly discovered through molecular docking screening and molecular dynamics (MD) simulation, which could be used as an α-glucosidase (PDB: 3A4A) inhibitor. Then a series of α-glucosidase inhibitors 4b-4r with novel structures were designed and synthesized with the lead ZINC20073984 as a template. The results of in vitro α-glucosidase inhibitory activity show that the synthesized phenoxyacetate ester Schiff base compounds 4e, 4o-4r (IC50 values range from 5.44 ± 0.52 μM to 33.67 ± 9.1 μM) exhibit good activity. Among them, ethyl (Z)-2-(2,4-dinitro-5-(2-(1-(2,4,6-trimethoxyphenyl) ethylidene) hydrazineyl) phenoxy) acetate (4r) and ethyl (Z)-2-(2,4-dinitro-5-(2-(1-(1-(4-ethoxyphenyl) ethylidene) hydrazineyl) phenoxy) acetate (4p) exert the best inhibitory activity, with IC50 values of 5.44 ± 0.52 μM and 5.80 ± 1.4 μM, respectively, which are superior to the standard drug acarbose (IC50 = 8.36 ± 0.02 μM). Molecular docking results indicate that the good inhibitory activity of 4r and 4p may be attributed to multiple hydrogen-bonding interactions with the α-glucosidase. Furthermore, the drug-likeness of all synthesized compounds was evaluated using the pkCSM tool, and ADMET predictions were conducted for compound 4r. The results demonstrated that all compounds follow Lipinski's rules, and 4r possesses favorable pharmaceutical properties. In an in vitro cytotoxicity assay, the most potent 4r shows non-cytotoxicity to the 3T3 cells with an CC50 value > 40 µM. In both antioxidant and anti-cancer capacity assays, compound 4r has demonstrated promising potential. The results of this study might be helpful in the discovery of new drugs for the treatment of diabetes mellitus type-2 and bladder cancer.

Highly Sensitive and Selective Detection of Hg2+ ions and Antibacterial Activity Using a Schiff-base Derivative

A simple and highly effective Schiff-base fluorescent chemosensor (S1) was synthesized and characterized by 1HNMR and fluorescence spectroscopy. The synthesized chemosensor was applied for the selective and sensitive detection of Hg2+ ions. The chemosensor exhibited a strong 'turn-on' fluorescence response in a CH3OH/H2O (1:9, v/v) solution due to complex formation (S1-Hg2+) which block photo induce electron transfer (PET). The chemosensor showed significant sensitivity with very low detection limit of 2.0 ppb, making it suitable for trace-level Hg2+ detection. Furthermore, the S1-Hg2+ complex demonstrated excellent antibacterial activity against various Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacterial strains, broadening its utility beyond sensing. This dual-functional system offers significant potential in environmental and biomedical applications.

Electronic, structural and nonlinear optical investigation of manganese carbonyl complexes of isatin derivatives by DFT

CONTEXT

Isatin-Schiff bases have wide applications in chemistry. The π conjugated electronic system and heterocylic structure of these materials make them valuable for use as photosensitized materials. The delocalization of π-electrons throughout the structure causes the UV-vis absorption spectra to shift to longer wavelengths. In this study, the isatin manganese carbonyl complex shifted the UV-vis absorption wavelength to a longer wavelength (vis. 400-700 nm) compared with our previous studies. The isatin derivatives (ISE (3[4-ethyl(phenyl)imino][indoline-2-one]), ISB (3[4-butly(phenyl)imino][indoline-2-one])) and their Mn carbonyl complexes MnISE ((ISE)Mn(CO)3), and, MnISB ((ISB)Mn(CO)3) were investigated via density functional theory (DFT) in different solvent media. The most stable complexes were found in medium polarity THF. The calculated HOMO-LUMO energy gap shows that the charge transfer occurs within the molecule. The HOMO-LUMO energy gap was increased with increasing solvent polarity for all investigated compounds. The smaller energy gap indicates that charge transfer occurs within the Mn(II) complex, in contrast to ISE and ISB, which exhibit larger energy gaps. As a result, the maximum absorption of Mn complexes shifts to the visible region. MnISB has the smallest HOMO-LUMO energy gap in THF. Additionally, the global reactivity parameters indicated that the MnISE complex has the highest electrophilicity index. DFT calculations have also been performed to investigate polarizability and first-order hyperpolarizability of these compounds. In water, the ISE had higher NLO values than the other structures did. These results indicate that all the studied molecules in different solvents could be good candidates for use in photosensitized and nonlinear optical materials.

METHODS

Geometries were determined at the DFT level via the LANL2DZ basis set for Mn and cc-PVTZ for other atoms in the molecules with the B3LYP functional. The UV-vis absorption spectra and HOMO-LUMO energies of ISE, ISB, and their Mn complexes were calculated by Time-dependent DFT (TDDFT) with CAM-B3LYP using the same basis sets. The UV-vis absorption spectra of ISE were also measured in acetonitrile and compared with the calculated spectra, which were consistent with the experimental results. All calculations were repeated in different solvents with the polarizable continuum model (PCM).

Synthesis, crystal structure, and antiviral evaluation of new imidazopyridine-schiff base derivatives: in vitro and in silico anti-HIV studies

A series of Imidazo[1,2-a]pyridine-Schiff base derivatives were synthesized and characterized using 1H NMR, 13C NMR, Mass Spectrometry and FTIR techniques, and the structure of 4a was further confirmed through single-crystal X-ray diffraction analysis. Density Functional Theory (DFT) has been used to investigate the structural and electronic properties. The synthesized compounds were evaluated in vitro for their antiviral activity against human immunodeficiency virus type-1 (HIV-1) and human immunodeficiency virus type-2 (HIV-2) in MT-4 cells. Compound 4a displayed EC50 values of 82,02 and 47,72 μg ml-1 against HIV-1 and HIV-2, respectively. Molecular docking studies were conducted to gain insights into the interaction mechanism of the synthesized compounds with HIV-1 reverse transcriptase. ADME analysis suggested acceptable pharmacokinetic profiles, though solubility remains a limitation for these compounds, highlighting the need for further structural modifications to enhance bioavailability and therapeutic potential.

Glowing discoveries: Schiff base-cyanostilbene probes illuminating metal ions and biological entities

Schiff bases featuring cyanostilbene units have emerged as versatile and highly effective probes for the selective detection of various metal ions as well as biologically important species. This review comprehensively highlights recent advances in the development and application of the probes, which exhibit remarkable Aggregation-Induced Emission (AIE), Twisted Intramolecular Charge Transfer (TICT), and Excited-State Intramolecular Proton Transfer (ESIPT) properties. These unique structural characteristics facilitate their potential applications in the detection of biologically important metal ions such as Zn2+, Fe3+, Cu2+, Hg2+ and Co2+ ions with high sensitivity and selectivity. Furthermore, these probes have demonstrated significant potential in the recognition of vital biological species, including arginine, hydrazine and hypochlorite (ClO-). The present review discusses the underlying detection mechanisms, emphasizing the role of the Schiff base and cyanostilbene moieties for the selective detection of particular biologically important entities. Moreover, this discussion highlights the practical applications, problems, and future directions in this fast-growing field, emphasizing the vital importance of these probes in both analytical chemistry and bioassays.

Molecular docking, derivatization, characterization and biological assays of amantadine

Background: Derivatization has been tremendously utilized in the field of drug discovery for optimizing the pharmacological properties and improving safety, efficacy and selectivity.Methodology: Schiff's bases (AD1-AD11) are synthesized through amantadine condensation with different aldehydes and ketones. Fourier transform infrared, 1H NMR, 13C NMR, TLC, liquid chromatography mass spectrometry analysis, in silico studies, molecular docking and antiviral activity through hemagglutinin test were performed for evaluation of new compounds.Results: AD2, 3 and 9-11 showed greater antiviral activity than the parent drug. Among all derivatives, AD2 and AD3 exhibited good potential against α-amylase while AD7 and AD10 showed stronger inhibition against α-glucosidase.Conclusion: So, it is concluded that the most potent derivatives can be used as lead compounds in novel drug design of antiviral antidiabetic agents.

Synthesis and Biological Activity of New Hydrazones Based on N-Aminomorpholine

The data on the synthesis of N-aminomorpholine hydrazones are presented. It is shown that the interaction of N-aminomorpholine with functionally substituted benzaldehydes and 4-pyridinaldehyde in isopropyl alcohol leads to the formation of corresponding hydrazones. The structure of the synthesized compounds was studied by 1H and 13C NMR spectroscopy methods, including the COSY (1H-1H), HMQC (1H-13C) and HMBC (1H-13C) methodologies. The values of chemical shifts, multiplicity, and integral intensity of 1H and 13C signals in one-dimensional NMR spectra were determined. The COSY (1H-1H), HMQC (1H-13C), and HMBC (1H-13C) results revealed homo- and heteronuclear interactions, confirming the structure of the studied compounds. The antiviral, cytotoxic, and antimicrobial activity of some synthesized hydrazones were investigated. It is shown that 2-((morpholinoimino)methyl)benzoic acid has a pronounced viral inhibitory property, comparable in its activity to commercial drugs Tamiflu and Remantadine. A docking study was performed using the influenza virus protein models (1930 Swine H1 Hemagglutinin and Neuraminidase of 1918 H1N1 strain). The potential binding sites that are complementary with 2-((morpholinoimino)methyl)benzoic acid were found.

The H2Valdien derivatives regulate the epithelial-mesenchymal transition of hepatoma carcinoma cells through the Hedgehog signaling pathway

This research delves into the influence of H2Valdien derivatives on the proliferation, migration, and apoptosis induction in hepatoma carcinoma cells (HepG2, Huh-7, and SMMC-7721), with a specific emphasis on inhibiting epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) through modulation of the Hedgehog (Hh) signaling pathway. Utilizing the cell counting kit-8 method, flow cytometry, TUNEL assay, wound healing, and transwell assays, we observed a dose-dependent growth arrest and apoptosis induction in HepG2, Huh-7, and SMMC-7721 cells. Notably, H2Valdien derivatives exhibited a capacity to reduce migration and invasion, impacting the expression of EMT-associated proteins such as N-cadherin, vimentin, and E-cadherin. Mechanistically, these derivatives demonstrated the inhibition of the Hh signaling pathway by inactivating Sonic Hh (Shh) and smoothened proteins. This study underscores the robust antiproliferative and apoptosis-inducing effects of H2Valdien derivatives on hepatoma carcinoma cells and elucidates their regulatory role in EMT through modulation of the Hh signaling pathway, providing valuable insights for potential therapeutic interventions.

Synthesis of Novel [{(2-Amino-5-Nitro-N-[(E)-Thiophen-2-yl-Methylidene]Aniline-κ3N1:N4:S)(Sulphato-κ2O1:O3)}Zinc(II)] Complex with Physico-Chemical and Biological Perspective Exploration: A Combined Experimental and Computational Studies

A novel metal complex was synthesized using freshly prepared 2-Amino-5-nitro-N-[(E)-thiophen-2-yl-methylidene]aniline ligand with Zn (II) sulphate heptahydrate in a 1:1 molar ratio. The ligand and the complex were characterized using different spectroscopic techniques, and the complex was assigned a distorted square pyramidal geometry. Additionally, DNA binding assays and antibacterial activity were used to assess the biological perspectives for the synthesized complex, including the ligand and complex which was further confirmed by molecular docking. Fluorescence Spectroscopy, viscosity measurement, and adsorption measurement were used to investigate the interaction of the Zn (II) complex with CT-DNA. A comparative in vitro antibacterial activity study against Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Bacillus subtilis, and Staphylococcus aureus strains were studied with free ligand and Zn (II) metal complex. The stable geometry of the complex was additionally established through computational simulation utilizing density functional theory, which was followed by the calculation of several electronic properties. The ADMET characteristics of the complex and ligand were also assessed using ADMET analysis. The in-silico ADMET properties pointed to a significant drug-likeness feature in the synthesized compounds, based on the Lipinski criteria.

Synthesis and Spectroscopic Characterization of Schiff Base Metal Complexes, Biological Activity, and Molecular Docking Studies

New cobalt(II), copper(II), and zinc(II) Schiff metal complexes were synthesized by the condensation reaction of 4-nitrobenzene-1,2-diamine with 3-4-(diethylamino)-2-hydroxybenzaldehyde. Fourier transform infrared, nuclear magnetic resonance, ultraviolet-visible, electron paramagnetic resonance, and high-resolution electrospray ionization mass spectrometry and powder X-ray diffraction were used to characterize the synthesized H2L and its metal complexes. Conductance measurements, magnetic moment estimation, and metal estimation have all been determined and discussed. The electrochemical properties of the synthesized compounds have been determined and discussed using cyclic voltammetry. The molecular structures of H2L and its metal complexes have been optimized using the B3LYP functional and the 6-31G (d,p) basis set, and their parameters have been discussed. The quantum chemical properties of these synthesized compounds have been predicted through charge distribution and molecular orbital analysis. The biological properties of the synthesized compounds' antioxidant, antifungal, and antibacterial activity have been studied and discussed. Furthermore, H2L and its complexes have been docked with HER2-associated target proteins in breast cancer.

Synthesis, Characterizations, and Quantum Chemical Investigations on Imidazo[1,2-a]pyrimidine-Schiff Base Derivative: (E)-2-Phenyl-N-(thiophen-2-ylmethylene)imidazo[1,2-a]pyrimidin-3-amine

In this study, (E)-2-phenyl-N-(thiophen-2-ylmethylene)imidazo[1,2-a]pyrimidin-3-amine (3) is synthesized, and detailed spectral characterizations using 1H NMR, 13C NMR, mass, and Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy were performed. The optimized geometry was computed using the density functional theory method at the B3LYP/6-311++G(d,p) basis set. The theoretical FT-IR and NMR (1H and 13C) analysis are agreed to validate the structural assignment made for (3). Frontier molecular orbitals, molecular electrostatic potential, Mulliken atomic charge, electron localization function, localized orbital locator, natural bond orbital, nonlinear optical, Fukui functions, and quantum theory of atoms in molecules analyses are undertaken and meticulously interpreted, providing profound insights into the molecular nature and behaviors. In addition, ADMET and drug-likeness studies were carried out and investigated. Furthermore, molecular docking and molecular dynamics simulations have been studied, indicating that this is an ideal molecule to develop as a potential vascular endothelial growth factor receptor-2 inhibitor.

Preparation of gelatin-chitosan bilayer film loaded citral nanoemulsion as pH and enzyme stimuli-responsive antibacterial material for food packaging

The responsive release of enzymes, pH, temperature, light and other stimuli is an effective means to reduce the loss of volatile active substances and control the release of active ingredients. The purpose of this study is to design a simple and rapid method to synthesize a multifunctional bilayer membrane, which has good mechanical properties, long-lasting pH and enzyme dual sensitive sustained release properties, and excellent antibacterial activity. The citral nanoemulsion was prepared by ultrasonic method, then the chitosan solution loaded with nanoemulsion was assembled on the gelatin film, and the uniform and smooth gelatin-chitosan bilayer film was successfully prepared. Compared with the control group, the bilayer film loaded with nanoemulsion showed better barrier performance, mechanical properties and antibacterial activity.