Synthesis of novel Schiff bases containing arylpyrimidines as promising antibacterial agents

Pursuing our recent interest regarding the antimicrobial activity of Schiff bases derivatives, we have synthesized a series of 6-(substitutedphenyl)-N'-((E)-(substitutedphenyl)methylidene)-2-methylpyridine-3-carbohydrazides (5a-n) and evaluated their antibacterial activity. Structures of these compounds were confirmed by standard studies of FTIR, (1)H NMR, (13)C NMR, MS and elemental analysis. Antibacterial activity of synthesized molecules was tested against Gram-positive (S. aureus and E. faecalis) and Gram-negative (E. coli and P. aeruginosa) bacterial strains. Synthesized compounds showed good antibacterial activity at a lower concentration than standard. Most of the compounds (5a, 5c, 5i, 5j and 5n) are potent against all the tested bacterial strains with MIC values ranging from 1.56-12.5 μg/mL.