Synthesis and cytotoxicity evaluation of [(2,4-dichlorophenoxy)methyl]-5-aryl-1,3,4-oxadiazole/4H -1,2,4-triazole analogues

We report herein the synthesis, characterization, and cytotoxicity evaluations of some newer oxadiazole and triazole analogues (5a–j). The cytotoxicity of all the title compounds were evaluated as per the National Cancer Institute protocol in a one-dose assay (10 µM) on nine different panels of 59 cancer cell lines. 2-{5-[(2,4-Dichlorophenoxy)methyl]- 1,3,4-oxadiazol-2-yl}phenol (5e) showed the maximum cytotoxicity among the series of ten compounds. The cytotoxicity of 5e was comparable to that of the standard anticancer drug, 5-fluorouracil, and better than that of imatinib. The structure activity relationship was also discussed.