Synthesis, in vitro urease inhibitory potential and molecular docking study of bis-indole bearing sulfonamide analogues

We have synthesized new fourteen bis-indole bearing sulfonamide analogues (1–14), characterized through different techniques such as NMR, HR-EIMS and evaluated against urease enzyme. All analogues showed outstanding inhibitory potential having varied IC50 values ranging from 3.30 ± 0.20 to 27.50 ± 0.20 µM as compared to standard drug thiourea (IC50 = 21.40 ± 0.21 µM). Analogues 5 and 1 (IC50 = 3.30 ± 0.20 µM and 4.20 ± 0.10 µM, respectively) withstand the first and second most potent among the series. Structure-activity relationship was carried out for all analogues which mainly depend upon the number, nature, position and electron donating/withdrawing effects of the substituent/s on the phenyl ring. A molecular docking study was carried out to show the binding interaction of the most potent analogue with the active site of the enzyme.