[Ag 2 (imH) 4 ](salH) 2 , in comparison to the prescription drug silver sulfadiazine, had significantly better anti-bacterial qualities, whilst against the fungus C. albicans it was 47 times more potent than the marketed drug ketoconazole.

a b s t r a c t 1-(3-Aminopropyl)imidazole (Apim) reacts with salicylaldeh yde and a selection of imidazole aldehydes and the resulting Schiff base ligands readily coordinate to Zn(II), Cu(II) and Ag(I) centres. X-ray crystal structures were obtained for two of the free ligands and also the Ag(I) complex of the Apim-salicylaldehyde ligand. Encouragingly, all of free ligands and most of their metal complexes are relatively non-toxic, in vivo , towards Galleria mellonella . Although the free ligands and the Cu(II) and Zn(II) complexes are inactive, in vitro , against a selection of microbial pathogens, most of the Ag(I) complexes exhibit moderate anti-bacterial activity and good anti-fungal activity.