Synthesis, structure and in vitro cytotoxicity testing of some 1,3,4-oxadiazoline derivatives from 2-hydroxy-5-iodobenzoic acid.

The syntheses of nine new 5-iodosalicylic acid-based 1,3,4-oxadiazoline derivatives starting from methyl salicylate are described. These compounds are 2-[4-acetyl-5-methyl-5-(3-nitrophenyl)-4,5-dihydro-1,3,4-oxadiazol-2-yl]-4-iodophenyl acetate (6a), 2-[4-acetyl-5-methyl-5-(4-nitrophenyl)-4,5-dihydro-1,3,4-oxadiazol-2-yl]-4-iodophenyl acetate (6b), 2-(4-acetyl-5-methyl-5-phenyl-4,5-dihydro-1,3,4-oxadiazol-2-yl)-4-iodophenyl acetate, C19H17IN2O4 (6c), 2-[4-acetyl-5-(4-fluorophenyl)-5-methyl-4,5-dihydro-1,3,4-oxadiazol-2-yl]-4-iodophenyl acetate, C19H16FIN2O4 (6d), 2-[4-acetyl-5-(4-chlorophenyl)-5-methyl-4,5-dihydro-1,3,4-oxadiazol-2-yl]-4-iodophenyl acetate, C19H16ClIN2O4 (6e), 2-[4-acetyl-5-(3-bromophenyl)-5-methyl-4,5-dihydro-1,3,4-oxadiazol-2-yl]-4-iodophenyl acetate (6f), 2-[4-acetyl-5-(4-bromophenyl)-5-methyl-4,5-dihydro-1,3,4-oxadiazol-2-yl]-4-iodophenyl acetate (6g), 2-[4-acetyl-5-methyl-5-(4-methylphenyl)-4,5-dihydro-1,3,4-oxadiazol-2-yl]-4-iodophenyl acetate (6h) and 2-[5-(4-acetamidophenyl)-4-acetyl-5-methyl-4,5-dihydro-1,3,4-oxadiazol-2-yl]-4-iodophenyl acetate (6i). The compounds were characterized by mass, 1H NMR and 13C NMR spectroscopies. Single-crystal X-ray diffraction studies were also carried out for 6c, 6d and 6e. Compounds 6c and 6d are isomorphous, with the 1,3,4-oxadiazoline ring having an envelope conformation, where the disubstituted C atom is the flap. The packing is determined by C-H...O, C-H...π and I...π interactions. For 6e, the 1,3,4-oxadiazoline ring is almost planar. In the packing, Cl...π interactions are observed, while the I atom is not involved in short interactions. Compounds 6d, 6e, 6f and 6h show good inhibiting abilities on the human cancer cell lines KB and Hep-G2, with IC50 values of 0.9-4.5 µM.