Synthesis, anticancer activity and molecular docking studies of new 4- nitroimidazole derivatives

Imidazoles have occupied a unique position in heterocyclic chemistry, and its derivatives have attracted considerable interests in recent years for their versatile properties in chemistry and pharmacology. Herein, we report the synthesis of 3-(1-benzyl-2-ethyl-4-nitro-1H-imidazol-5-ylsulfanyl)-1-(4-substituted phenyl-piperazin- 1-yl)-propan-1-one 5a-p by reaction of 3-(1-benzyl-2-methyl-4-nitro-1H-imidazol-5-ylsulfanyl)-propanoyl chloride (3) with piperazine nucleophiles. Eighteen compounds were assessed for their antiproliferative inhibition potency against four human cancer cell lines (MCF-7, PC3, MDA MB231 and Du145). Compounds 5f and 5k were the most potent anticancer agents on MCF-7 cell lines cell line with IC50 value of 1.0 ?g/mL, while 5d and 5m exhibited cytotoxic effect on PC3 and DU145 cell lines with IC50 values of 4.0 and 5.0 ?g/mL, respectively. The molecular docking of compounds 5f, 5d and 5m has been studied.