Synthesis, antibacterial activity and docking studies of benzyl alcohol derivatives

Benzyl alcohol derivatives were synthesized, and characterized using NMR and FTIR spectroscopic techniques. For the first time, the antibacterial activities of the synthesized compounds were examined using disc diffusion method by measuring the diameter of the zones of inhibition against Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa. The results demonstrated that the activity was concentration dependant, and that the compounds were generally potent against P. aeruginosa. Only two of the compounds were active against S. aureus. In terms of broad spectrum activity, compound 2d (35 mm) was found to exhibit a promising efficacy which surpassed that of the standard drug (amoxicillin).The binding of compounds 2a-e to the glucosamine-6-phosphate synthase (GlcN-6-P) active-site revealed that all the synthesized compounds fitted into the GlcN-6-P active-site receptor cavity, exhibited potential hydrogen-bonding interactions with the proximal amino acid residues and aligned similar to amoxicillin. Interestingly, it has been found that the most active compound, 2d also appeared to have a relatively low binding energy (-52.8901 kcal/mol).