New imidazo[2,1-b]thiazole-based aryl hydrazones: unravelling their synthesis and antiproliferative and apoptosis-inducing potential† †Electronic supplementary information (ESI) available. See DOI: 10.1039/d0md00188k

Herein, we have designed and synthesized new imidazo[2,1- b ]thiazole-based aryl hydrazones ( 9a–w ) and evaluated their anti-proliferative potential against a panel of human cancer cell lines. Herein, we have designed and synthesized new imidazo[2,1- b ]thiazole-based aryl hydrazones ( 9a–w ) and evaluated their anti-proliferative potential against a panel of human cancer cell lines. Among the synthesized compounds, 9i and 9m elicited promising cytotoxicity against the breast cancer cell line MDA-MB-231 with IC 50 values of 1.65 and 1.12 μM, respectively. Cell cycle analysis revealed that 9i and 9m significantly arrest MDA-MB-231 cells in the G0/G1 phase. In addition, detailed biological studies such as annexin V-FITC/propidium iodide, DCFH-DA, JC-1 and DAPI staining assays revealed that 9i and 9m triggered apoptosis in MDA-MB-213 cells. Overall, the current work demonstrated the cytotoxicity and apoptosis-inducing potential of 9i and 9m in breast cancer cells and suggested that they could be explored as promising antiproliferative leads in the future.