Antimicrobial Studies of N-Heterocyclic Carbene Silver Complexes Containing Benzimidazol-2-ylidene Ligand

Seven novel 4-vinylbenzyl substituted N-heterocyclic carbene (NHC) silver complexes were synthesized from different benzimidazolium salts and silver (I) oxide in dichloromethane at room temperature. These new 4-vinylbenzyl substituted NHC silver complexes were characterized by spectroscopic (NMR, IR) and elemental analysis techniques. Using the agar dilution procedure, the antimicrobial activities of these synthesized new compounds were investigated against Gram (+)/(−) bacterial and fungal strains. These NHC silver complexes showed effective activities against Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa (Gram-negative bacterial strains), Enterococcus faecalis, Staphylococcus aureus (Gram-positive bacterial strains), and Candida tropicalis and Candida albicans (fungal strains).