Synthesis, characterisation and antifungal activity of a series of Cobalt(II) and Nickel(II) complexes with ligands derived from reduced N, N′-o-Phenylenebis(Salicylideneimine)

The synthesis and characterisation by elemental analysis, conductivity, FTIR, UV–Visible, ESR and magnetic measurements are described for a series of complexes of nickel(II) and cobalt(II) with three ligands (H2L1–3) derived from reduced N, N′-o-Phenylenebis(salicylideneimine). The complexes formed are identified as neutral species, where the ligands are coordinated through N and O donor atoms. The formulae obtained for the complexes are: [CoL(H2O)2] with octahedral geometry and [NiL] with tetrahedral geometry. Their antifungal activity is evaluated towards human pathogenic fungi including yeasts of the Candida genus, some opportunistic moulds belonging to the Aspergillus, Scedosporium genus and some dermatophytes. The cobalt complexes show a significant growth inhibition of yeasts tested and also to fungi of the genus Scedosporium which is of interest because these fungi are usually poorly susceptible to current antifungal including Amphotericin B and Itraconazole, chosen as reference in this study. The activity data show that the metal complexes are more potent than the parent ligand.