Synthesis of some new biologically active 1,3,4-oxadiazolyl nitroindoles and a modified Fischer indole synthesis of ethyl nitro indole-2-carboxylates

Rapid Assembly of Pyrrole-Ligated 1,3,4-Oxadiazoles and Excellent Antibacterial Activity of Iodophenol Substituents

Pyrrole-ligated 1,3,4-oxadiazole is a very important pharmacophore which exhibits broad therapeutic effects such as anti-tuberculosis, anti-epileptic, anti-HIV, anti-cancer, anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and antibacterial activities. A one-pot Maillard reaction between D-Ribose and an L-amino methyl ester in DMSO with oxalic acid at 2.5 atm and 80 °C expeditiously produced pyrrole-2-carbaldehyde platform chemicals in reasonable yields, which were utilized for the synthesis of pyrrole-ligated 1,3,4-oxadiazoles. Benzohydrazide reacted with the formyl group of the pyrrole platforms to provide the corresponding imine intermediates, which underwent I₂-mediated oxidative cyclization to the pyrrole-ligated 1,3,4-oxadiazole skeleton. The structure and activity relationship (SAR) of the target compounds with varying alkyl or aryl substituents of the amino acids and electron-withdrawing or electron-donating substituents on the phenyl ring of benzohydrazide were evaluated for antibacterial activity against Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, and Acinetobacter baumannii as representative Gram(-) and Gram(+) bacteria. Branched alkyl groups from the amino acid showed better antibacterial activities. Absolutely superior activities were observed for 5f-1 with an iodophenol substituent against A. baumannii (MIC < 2 μg/mL), a bacterial pathogen that displays a high resistance to commonly used antibiotics.

Anti-MRSA agent discovery using Caenorhabditis elegans-based high-throughput screening

Staphylococcus aureus is a leading cause of hospital- and community-acquired infections. Despite current advances in antimicrobial chemotherapy, the infections caused by S. aureus remain challenging due to their ability to readily develop resistance. Indeed, antibiotic resistance, exemplified by methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA) is a top threat to global health security. Furthermore, the current rate of antibiotic discovery is much slower than the rate of antibiotic-resistance development. It seems evident that the conventional in vitro bacterial growth-based screening strategies can no longer effectively supply new antibiotics at the rate needed to combat bacterial antibiotic-resistance. To overcome this antibiotic resistance crisis, screening assays based on host-pathogen interactions have been developed. In particular, the free-living nematode Caenorhabditis elegans has been used for drug screening against MRSA. In this review, we will discuss the general principles of the C. elegans-based screening platform and will highlight its unique strengths by comparing it with conventional antibiotic screening platforms. We will outline major hits from high-throughput screens of more than 100,000 small molecules using the C. elegans-MRSA infection assay and will review the mode-of-action of the identified hit compounds. Lastly, we will discuss the potential of a C. elegans-based screening strategy as a paradigm shift screening platform.

Synthesis and Evaluation of Antimicrobial Activities of Novel N-Substituted Indole Derivatives

Indole motifs are one of the most significant scaffolds in the discovery of new drugs. We have described a synthesis of new N-substituted indole derivatives (1-3), and their in vitro antimicrobial activities were investigated. The synthesis of titled compounds has been demonstrated by utilizing commercially available starting materials. The antibacterial and antifungal activities were performed using new strains of bacteria Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, and Candida albicans using the disc diffusion method. Notably, the compound 4-(1-(2-(1H-indol-1-yl) ethoxy) pentyl)-N,N-dimethyl aniline (1) was found to be most potent than the other analogues (2 and 3), which has shown higher inhibition than the standard drug chloramphenicol.

Ethyl 2-[(Z)-2-(2-nitrophenyl)hydrazinylidene]propanoate

In the molecule of the title compound, C11H13N3O4, all non-H atoms are nearly coplanar with the largest deviation from the mean plane being 0.152 (2) Å. A strong intramolecular N—H...O hydrogen bond closes a six-membered ring. In the crystal, molecules are linked by π–π interactions [intercentroid distance = 3.724 (2) Å], forming stacks parallel to thecaxis.

Colorimetric and ON–OFF–ON fluorescent chemosensor for the sequential detection of Cu(ii) and cysteine and its application in imaging of living cells

An easy-to-prepare colorimetric and ON–OFF–ON fluorescent naphthol derivative 1 has been used for sequential detection of Cu²⁺ and cysteine.

Synthesis and effects of oxadiazole derivatives on tyrosinase activity and human SK-MEL-28 malignant melanoma cells

Melanin is a form of pigment that gives colour to human skin, hair and eyes.

Combining Zn Ion Catalysis with Homogeneous Gold Catalysis: An Efficient Annulation Approach to N-Protected Indoles

The Fischer indole synthesis is perhaps the most powerful method for indole preparation, but it often suffers from low regioselectivities with unsymmetric aliphatic ketone substrates and strong acidic conditions and is not suitable for α,β-unsaturated ketones. In this article, we disclose an efficient synthesis of N-protected indoles from N-arylhydroxamic acids/N-aryl-N-hydroxycarbamates and a variety of alkynes via a cooperative gold and zinc catalysis. The zinc catalysis is similar to the related zinc ion catalysis in metalloenzymes such as human carbonic anhydrase II and substantially enhances the O-nucleophilicity of N-acylated hydroxamines by forming the corresponding Zn chelates. The Zn chelates can attack gold-activated alkynes to form O-alkenyl-N-arylhydroxamates, which can undergo facile 3,3-sigmatropic rearrangements and subsequent cyclodehydrations to yield N-protected indole products. This new chemistry offers several important improvements over the Fischer indole synthesis: a) the reaction conditions are mildly acidic and can tolerate sensitive groups such as Boc; b) broader substrate scopes including substrates with pendant carbonyl groups (reactive in the Fischer chemistry) and alkyl chlorides (e.g., 3f); c) better regioselectivities for the formation of 2-substituted indoles under much milder conditions; d) 2-alkenylindoles can be prepared readily in good to excellent yields, but the Fischer chemistry could not; e) with internal alkynes both steric and electronic controls are available for achieving good regioselectivities, while the Fischer chemistry is in general problematic.

2-(4-Methylphenyl)acetohydrazide

In the title compound, C₉H₁₂N₂O, the dihedral angle between the benzene ring and the mean plane of the acetohydrazide group is 88.2 (7)°. In the crystal, N—H⋯O hydrogen bonds and weak C—H⋯O inter­actions link the mol­ecules into infinite ribbons along [001].

Identification of small-molecule enhancers of arginine methylation catalyzed by coactivator-associated arginine methyltransferase 1

Arginine methylation is a common post-translational modification that is crucial in modulating gene expression at multiple critical levels. The arginine methyltransferases (PRMTs) are envisaged as promising druggable targets, but their role in physiological and pathological pathways is far from being clear due to the limited number of modulators reported to date. In this effort, enzyme activators can be invaluable tools useful as gain-of-function reagents to interrogate the biological roles in cells and in vivo of PRMTs. Yet the identification of such molecules is rarely pursued. Herein we describe a series of aryl ureido acetamido indole carboxylates (dubbed "uracandolates"), able to increase the methylation of histone (H3) or nonhistone (polyadenylate-binding protein 1, PABP1) substrates induced by coactivator-associated arginine methyltransferase 1 (CARM1), both in in vitro and cellular settings. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report of compounds acting as CARM1 activators.

Au-catalyzed synthesis of 2-alkylindoles from N-arylhydroxylamines and terminal alkynes

The first gold-catalyzed addition of N-arylhydroxylamines to aliphatic terminal alkynes is developed to access O-alkenyl-N-arylhydroxylamines, which undergo facile in situ sequential 3,3-rearrangements and cyclodehydrations to afford 2-alkylindoles with regiospecificity and under exceptionally mild reaction conditions.

Complete analysis of the 1H and 13C NMR spectra of diastereomeric mixtures of (R,S- and S,S-)-3,6-dimethoxy-2,5-dihydropyrazine-substituted indoles and their conformational preference in solution

Complete analysis of the (1)H and (13)C NMR spectra obtained with and without a chemical shift reagent (Eu(fod)(3)), of bis-lactim ether 1 (Schöllkopf auxiliary) and monosubstituted 3- or 2-{(2R,5S or 2S,5S)-5-isopropyl-3,6-dimethoxy-2,5-dihydropyrazin-2-yl]methyl}-1H-indoles is presented using gradient-selected one-dimensional (1D) and two-dimensional NMR techniques, such as 1D TOCSY, 1D NOESY (DPFGSE NOE), gCOSY, NOESY, ROESY gHETCOR, gHSQC and gHMBC. The contour plot of the gCOSY spectrum of 1-10 revealed cross peaks arising from the five-bond coupling between the H2 and H5 resonances of the dihydropyrazine ring for syn- ((5)J(H2, H5) = 4-5.7 Hz) and for anti-isomers ((5)J(H2, H5) = 3.4-3.8 Hz). The magnitude of the coupling constant was utilized to distinguish between the syn- and the anti-isomers (diastereomers). The precise values of (n)J(HH) (n = 3, 4, 5, 6) coupling constants for the indole and 2,5-dihydropyrazine moieties deduced from the calculated NMR spectra were supported by 1D TOCSY and gCOSY experiments and gauge invariant atomic orbital (GIAO) calculations. The magnitude of the coupling constants ((5)J(H2, H5)) indicates that the dihydropyrazine ring exists in a boat conformation. In both isomers, the indole group adopts a 'folded' conformation in which one diastereotopic face is effectively shielded by the aromatic benzene ring of the indole. This is supported by gradient-selected 1D NOESY and 2D NOESY experiments. Theoretical calculations of the conformation were performed to support the through-space shielding effect of the aromatic indole moiety based on the DFT/GIAO calculated (1)H NMR data (chemical shifts and coupling constants) for 2-syn- and 2-anti-diastereomers in CDCl(3).

Synthesis, structure, and bioactivity of N′-substituted benzylidene-3,4,5-trimethoxybenzohydrazide and 3-acetyl-2-substituted phenyl-5-(3,4,5-trimethoxyphenyl)-2,3-dihydro-1,3,4-oxadiazole derivatives

Some 3-acetyl-2-substituted phenyl-5-(3,4,5-trimethoxyphenyl)-2,3-dihydro-1,3,4-oxadiazole derivatives were synthesized by cyclization reaction of N'-substituted benzylidene-3,4,5-trimethoxybenzohydrazide in acetic anhydride. Their structures were verified by elemental analysis, IR, (1)H NMR, and (13)C NMR. Compound 3i was provided with X-ray crystallographic data. The compounds were evaluated for their antiproliferative activities against some cancer cells in vitro by MTT method. Among them, 2a, 2b, 2c, 2f, 3l, and 3m were highly effective against PC3 cells and 2a, 2c, and 2f showed moderate activities against Bcap37 and BGC823 cells. The IC(50) values of high active compounds 2a, 2b, 2c, 2f, 3l, and 3m against PC3 cells were 0.2, 1.8, 0.2, 1.2, 1.7, and 0.3muM, respectively.

Synthesis of Some New 2-(6-Methoxy-2-Naphthyl)- 5-Aryl-1,3,4-Oxadiazoles as Possible Non-steroidal Anti-inflammatory and Analgesic Agents

The synthesis of some new 2-(6-methoxy-2-naphthyl)-5-aryl-1,3,4-oxadiazoles (4a-k) has been described. Ethyl-6-methoxy-2-naphthoate (1) yielded on treatment with hydrazine hydrate to 6-methoxy-2-naphthoic acid hydrazide (2). Compound 2 reacted with substituted aromatic carboxylic acids (3a-k) in phosphorus oxychloride yielded 2-(6-methoxy-2-naphthyl)-5-aryl-1,3,4-oxadiazoles (4a-k). Newly synthesized compounds were characterized by IR, (1)H-NMR and mass spectral data. All the compounds were screened for their anti-inflammatory and analgesic activity. Compound 4j exhibited promising anti-inflammatory and analgesic activities.