An efficient 2-aminothiazolesalicylaldehyde fluorescent chemosensor for Fe(2+) ion detection and a potential inhibitor of NUDT5 signaling hormone for breast cancer cell and molecular keypad lock application

A novel thiazole phenol conjugate, 2-aminothiazolesalicylaldehyde (receptor1) was designed and synthesized for the first time through a single step process via Schiff base condensation reaction. The formation of receptor1 was confirmed by FTIR, (13)C NMR, and (1)H NMR. The IR spectra confirmed the presence of the aldimine formation. It is further supported by the proton NMR, showing the disappearance of aldehyde peaks and the formation of a new imine peak. This is further corroborated by the (13)C NMR. The receptor1 complexing with various metal ions were studied through fluorescence spectroscopy showed its selectivity toward Fe(2+) ion following a reverse photoinduced electron transfer (PET) process compared to all other potentially competing ions. The receptor1 was applied as a sensor to sense Fe(2+) ion in water samples. The detection limit for Fe(2+) ion in drinking water was substantially lower (0.003 µM) than the EPA (environmental protection agency) recommendation (5.37 M). The capability of receptor1 in recovering Fe(2+) ion in bore water, tap water, and drinking water was up to 99.5%. The receptor1 was also used as a chelating ligand (receptor1) in molecular docking and it was assessed as a potential inhibitor of NUDT5, a silence hormone signaling for breast cancer. The test compound (PDB: 5NWH) showed good affinity toward the target receptor1 with the binding energy of – 5.23 kcal mol(−1). Furthermore, the receptor1 showed excellent reversibility property on adding EDTA solution. Due to the marvelous reversible property, a molecular-scale sequential information processing circuit is designed for the multi-task behavior such as ‘Writing-Reading-Erasing-Reading’ in the form of binary logic gate. The consecutive addition of Fe(2+) ion and EDTA solution to receptor1 paves a way for the construction of INHIBIT logic gate. Additionally, the receptor1 showed the mimicking behavior of molecular keypad lock. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s11696-022-02373-z.