Objective: The principal objective of the study was to synthesize and evaluate the biological activities of a novel class of 5-benzylidene substituted rhodanine derivatives as antimicrobial agents. Methods: All the synthesized compounds (D1-D10) were screened for their antimicrobial activities using microdilution methods as per the reported procedure. All compounds were evaluated as potential antimicrobial agents against gram-positive bacteria: Bacillus cereus, Staphylococcus aureus, gram negative bacteria: Escherichia coli Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Klebsiella pneumoniae Fungal cultures used in the study were Aspergillus niger, Candida albicans, Candida parapsilosis, Candida tropicalis and Candida glabrata. Results: Compound D6 showed good antifungal activity in the MIC range 16μg/ml against Candida tropicalis and Compound D10 showed good antifungal activity in the MIC range 16μg/ml against Candida glabrata. Compounds D2 and D5 showed good antibacterial activity at 32μg/ml. all the other compounds showed moderate antibacterial activity. Conclusion: Based on the above results, it can be concluded that the compounds may lead to the development of more potent antimicrobial drug candidates in the near future.

This study suggested that the disulfide linkage alone and dithiocarbamate along with disulfide group within the same chemical entity impart the desired multiple activities of compounds.