Pharmacological and Toxicological Screening of Novel Benzimidazole-Morpholine Derivatives as Dual-Acting Inhibitors

• Main Authors: Nafiz Öncü Can, Ulviye Acar Çevik, Begüm Nurpelin Sağlık, Yusuf Özkay, Özlem Atlı, Merve Baysal, Ümide Demir Özkay, Özgür Devrim Can
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: MDPI AG 2017-08-01
• Series: Molecules
• Subjects: benzimidazoles; morpholines; AChE; MAO; COX
• Online Access: https://www.mdpi.com/1420-3049/22/8/1374

The aim of this study was to investigate acetylcholinesterase (AChE), monoamine oxidase A (MAO-A), monoamine oxidase B (MAO-B), cyclooxygenase-1 (COX-1) and cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) enzyme inhibitory, and antimicrobial activities of a new series of 2-(4-substituted phenyl)-1-[2-(morpholin-4-yl)ethyl]-1H-benzimidazole derivatives, for their possible use as multi-action therapeutic agents. Target compounds (n = 15) were synthesized under microwave irradiation conditions in two steps, and their structures were elucidated by FT-IR, 1H-NMR, 13C-NMR and high resolution mass spectroscopic analyses. Pharmacological screening studies revealed that two of the compounds (2b and 2j) have inhibitory potential on both COX-1 and COX-2 enzymes. In addition, cytotoxic and genotoxic properties of the compounds 2b, 2j and 2m were investigated via the well-known MTT and Ames tests, which revealed that the mentioned compounds are non-cytotoxic and non-genotoxic. As a concise conclusion, two novel compounds were characterized as potential candidates for treatment of frequently encountered inflammatory diseases.