Synthesis of novel benzimidazole–oxadiazole derivatives as potent anticancer activity

DNA topoisomerase I regulates DNA topological structure in many cellular metabolic processes and is a validated target for the development of antitumor agents. In this work, a series of novel 2-[(5-(4-(5(6)-substituted-1H-benzimidazol-2-yl)phenyl)-1,3,4-oxadiazol-2-yl)thio]-1-(4-substitutedphenyl)ethan-1-ones (4a–4s) derivatives have been synthesized and evaluated for DNA Topo I inhibition and cytotoxicity. The structures of the compounds (4a–4s) were confirmed by IR, 1H-NMR, 13C-NMR, 2D NMR, and mass spectroscopy. Anticancer activity of these compounds was assessed against two different human cancer cell lines A549 (human lung adenocarcinoma) and HepG2 (human liver cancer cell line), as well as normal mouse embryonic fibroblast cells (NIH3T3). IC50 values of compounds 4a, 4c, and 4f were highest than those exhibited for the reference drug cisplatin. Then, the inhibitory effect of 4a, 4c, and 4f compounds on topoisomerase I enzyme with the relaxation assay was investigated on supercoiled DNA using agarose gel electrophoresis. The Annexin V-FITC assay demonstrated that these compounds induce cell death by apoptosis.