Synthesis, antioxidant and anticholinesterase activities of novel quinoline-aminophosphonate derivatives

A series of 20 novel alpha-aminophosphonate derivatives bearing quinoline or quinolone moiety was designed and synthesized via Kabachnik-Fields reaction in the presence of triethylammonium acetate as a solvent and catalyst under ultrasound irradiation. This procedure affords products in high yields and short reaction times. Molecular structures of the synthesized compounds 4a-g and 5a-m were confirmed using various spectroscopic methods. The antioxidant activity of these compounds was evaluated by eight complementary in vitro tests. The anticholinesterase activity (AChE, BChE) of these compounds were also evaluated. In addition, theoretical calculations of all compounds were investigated as corrosion inhibitors using density functional theory (DFT). The results revealed that 16 of these compounds exhibited high levels of antioxidant activities depending on the assay and that most compounds showed more potent inhibitory activities against acetylcholinesterase (AChE) and butyrylcholinesterase (BChE).