Benzofuran-isatin-hydroxylimine/thiosemicarbazide hybrids: Design,synthesis and in vitro anti-mycobacterial activity evaluation

A series of novel benzofuran-isatin-hydroxylimine/thiosemicarbazide hybrids were designed, synthesized and evaluated for their in vitro anti-TB activities against drug-sensitive MTB H₃₇Rv and MDR-TB isolates as well as cytotoxicity. All benzofuran-isatin-hydroxylimine/thiosemicarbazide hybrids exhibited considerable in vitro anti-mycobacterial activities against the tested three MTB strains, and all of them also showed acceptable cytotoxicity. The most active hybrid 7f was >4.8 and >51 folds more potent than the first line anti-TB agents RIF and INH against both drug-sensitive MTB H₃₇Rv and MDR-TB isolates, respectively. The results demonstrated the potential utility of benzofuran-isatin-hydroxylimine/-thiosemicarbazide hybrids as anti-TB agents.