Introduction: The indole scaffold, as a pharmacophore, is important because it exhibits many different biological and medicinal uses. For instance, the indole scaffold shows promise for treating bacterial and fungal infections. This research aims to create a series of new hybrid molecules that incorporate both indoles and imidazoles, and to test these new hybrids for their antimicrobial properties. Methods: A series of novel 2′-2-(substituted phenyl)-4,5-diphenyl-1H-imidazol-1-yl phenyl-1Hindole derivatives (4a–4j) were synthesized via the condensation of 2-(o-aminophenyl)indole with various aromatic aldehydes in ethanol using acetic acid as a catalyst. The reaction progress was monitored by Thin-Layer Chromatography (TLC), and products were purified by recrystallization. Structural elucidation was carried out using FT-IR, ¹H-NMR, ¹³C-NMR, mass spectrometry, and elemental analysis. results: All synthesized derivatives were evaluated for their antibacterial, antifungal, and anticancer activities. Compounds 4e, 4f, and 4k demonstrated significantly enhanced antimicrobial effects. Molecular docking studies further supported these findings, revealing strong binding affinities of the active compounds with key biological targets such as DNA Gyrase B and Lanosterol 14-α demethylase. Results: All synthesized compounds were screened for antibacterial and antifungal activities. Compounds 4e, 4g, and 4j demonstrated superior antimicrobial activity. Molecular docking studies revealed strong binding affinities with DNA Gyrase B and Lanosterol 14-α demethylase, correlating with the experimental findings. Discussion: The other biological activities, especially antimicrobial, were found in some selected derivatives, indicating that these indole-imidazole hybrids have good potential to act as lead compounds in the field of antimicrobial drug development. Conclusion: The synthesized indole–imidazole derivatives represent promising lead scaffolds for further development as antimicrobial agents.
Bhardwaj et al. (Wed,) studied this question.