Synthesis and cytotoxic activity evaluation of some new 1, 3, 4-oxadiazole, 1, 3, 4-thiadiazole and 1, 2, 4- triazole derivatives attached to phthalimide

Background and purpose: In the last few decades, nitrogen-rich heterocyclic compounds such as 1, 3, 4-thiadiazoles, 1, 2, 4-triazoles and 1, 3, 4-oxadiazoles have received considerable attention because of their notable biological properties, especially cytotoxic effects. The small molecules of mentioned azole derivatives revealed very intensive antitumor activity. In addition, phthalimide-thiadiazole and naphthalimide-triazole hybrid derivatives have shown remarkable cytotoxic effects. According to these observations, some of the hybrid derivatives containing the phthalimide-five-membered azoles were prepared in three steps in this research. Experimental approach: The thiol group of azoles was treated with ethyl chloroacetate which was followed by a reaction with hydrazine hydrate to provide acid hydrazide derivatives. Subsequently, the corresponding acid hydrazides were utilized to prepare the final derivatives through the reaction with phthalic anhydride. Cytotoxic activity of final compounds was evaluated against MCF-7 and HeLa cell lines using MTT assay. Findings/Results: Compound 3d containing two phthalimide moieties in its structure showed a significant improvement in cytotoxic activity with an IC50 value of 29 μM against HeLa cell line. Compounds 3a-3c showed less cytotoxic effects against both cell lines. Conclusion and implications: The combination of the thiadiazole nucleus with two phthalimide structures increased the cytotoxic activity against the HeLa cell line. This increase in cytotoxic activity is probably due to its being more lipophilic characteristic and interaction of this derivative with the biological targets of two directions.