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

摘要

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.