Microwave-assisted synthesis of (3,5-disubstituted isoxazole)-linked benzimidazolone derivatives: DFT calculations and biological activities

The present work describes the synthesis, characterization, and biological activities of a novel series of isoxazole linked benzimidazolones. The structures of the target compounds and intermediates were characterized by 1H NMR, 13C NMR, and HRMS. Furthermore, all isolated molecules were evaluated for their antioxidant and antimicrobial activities. Some of these compounds were found to be the most potent antimicrobial agents. Moreover, most compounds exhibited significant scavenging activity on DPPH assay. Besides, the compounds’ chemical reactivity was also assessed theoretically through Conceptual Density Functional Theory (CDFT) indices. The wB97X-D/cc-pVDZ calculation allowed to classify some derivatives as moderate-to-strong electrophiles and strong nucleophiles.