Antifungal Evaluation of Benzoxazole and Benzothiazole Derivatives: An In Vitro and In Silico Study

The benzoxazoles and benzothiazoles derivatives have a variety of pharmacological activities, such as antimicrobial activity. Thus, in the present study, the antifungal activity of 13 benzoxazole and benzothiazole derivatives against Candida spp. strains were evaluated. Compound 1 presented strong antimicrobial action for C. krusei with MIC of 15.6 µg/mL, activities against strains of C. albicans (62.5 µg/mL), and C. tropicalis (125.0 µg/mL). In addition, it was evidenced that biological activity occurs in the plasma membrane in C. albicans. The results of the in silico study showed that the predicted inhibition of HSP90 and aldehyde dehydrogenase could explain the antifungal activity of Compound 1. New derivatives can be synthesized from the functionalization of these chemical structures and may result in more potent antifungal compounds, in addition to advancing the investigation of the mechanism of action. Therefore, the data highlight the potential of these compounds in the search for antimicrobial drugs.