Synthesis, antimicrobial activity and molecular docking study of novel α-(diphenylphosphoryl)- and α-(diphenylphosphorothioyl)cycloalkanone oximes.

: A series of novel α-(diphenylphosphoryl)- and α-(diphenylphosphorothioyl)cycloalkanone oximes have been synthesized in search for novel bioactive molecules. Their structures were characterized by various spectroscopic methods including IR, NMR ( 1 H, 31 P, 13 C), mass spectrometry and single crystal X-ray diffraction. The newly synthesized phosphorus-containing oximes were screened for their in vitro antimicrobial activity against Gram-positive bacteria ( Staphylococcus aureus and Bacillus subtilis ), Gram-negative bacteria ( Escherichia coli and Salmonella typhimurium ) and fungal strains ( Candida albicans and Candida glabrata ). The biological assays showed that all the studied compounds ( 2a-f ) exhibited high antibacterial and antifungal activities at only 0.1-2.1 μg/mL. In silico molecular docking studies in FabH enzyme active site were performed in order to predict the possible interaction modes and binding energies of the drug candidates at the molecular level.