Synthesis and biological screening of di- and trisubstituted imidazoles

Disubstituted imidazoles were prepared by reacting appropriate phenylglyoxal with different aryl aldehydes in the presence of ammonium acetate. Trisubstituted imidazoles were prepared by reacting disubstituted imidazoles with chlorobenzene in the presence of catalytic amount of triethylamine (TEA). The synthesized compounds were characterized on the basis of IR, 1H-NMR and mass spectral data and elemental analysis results. They were tested for their antiinflammatory and antimicrobial actions. Two compounds showed good antiinflammatory activity in carrageenan induced rat paw edema test with very low ulcerogenic activity. Fair number of compounds were found to have significant antimicrobial activity especially against fungal species.