Anticancer and Antimicrobial Activities of New Cobalt and Zinc Complex-Derived Benzimidazole Containing Nitro or Methyl Groups

High Resolution Image Download MS PowerPoint Slide The cytotoxic effects of six newly synthesized 5(6)-methyl or 5(6)-nitrobenzimidazole-derived compounds that contain cobalt and zinc on nonsmall cell lung carcinoma (A549) and healthy lung epithelial (BEAS-2B) cell lines were evaluated by MTT, caspase-3, and Western Blotting methods. Cisplatin was also used as a reference compound. Compound 4 and compound 5 exhibited high cytotoxic activity against A549. While the IC 50 value of cisplatin was 14.31 μM, IC 50 values of compound 4 and compound 5 were 10.30 and 7.01 μM on A549 cells at 72 h, respectively. On the other hand, for BEAS-2B cells, the IC 50 values of cisplatin, compound 4, and compound 5 were 5.91, 90.13, and 51,68 μM, respectively. The results showed that although compounds 4 and 5 have high cytotoxicity on A549 cells, similar to cisplatin, they are less cytotoxic to BEAS-2B cells than cisplatin. The antibacterial and antifungal properties of the synthesized compounds were also investigated using minimum inhibitory concentration method. Their antimicrobial activities were tested against the Gram-negative bacteria Escherichia coli ATCC 25922 and Pseudomonas aeruginosa ATCC 27853, Gram-positive Staphylococcus aureus ATCC 29213, and yeast species Candida albicans ATCC 90028 and Candida tropicalis . The compounds showed notable antimicrobial activity against these pathogenic bacteria and yeasts.