The present manuscript deals with the development of novel p-aminobenzoic acid (PABA) associated 1,3,5-triazine derivatives as antimalarial agents. The molecules were developed via microwave-assisted synthesis and structures of compounds were ascertained via numerous analytical and spectroscopic techniques. The synthesized compounds were also subjected to ADMET analysis. In a docking analysis, the title compounds showed high and diverse binding affinities towards wild (-162.45 to -369.38 kcal/mol) and quadruple mutant (-165.36 to -209.47 kcal/mol) Pf-DHFR-TS via interacting with Phe58, Arg59, Ser111, Ile112, Phe116. The in vitro antimalarial activity suggested that compounds 4e, 4b, and 4h showed IC50 ranging from 4.18 to 8.66 μg/ml against the chloroquine-sensitive (3D7) strain of Plasmodium falciparum. Moreover, compounds 4g, 4b, 4e, and 4c showed IC50 ranging from 8.12 to 12.09 μg/ml against chloroquine-resistant (Dd2) strain. In conclusion, our study demonstrated the development of hybrid PABA substituted 1,3,5-triazines as a novel class of Pf-DHFR inhibitor for antimalarial drug discovery.
Keywords: 1,3,5-triazine; Pf-DHFR; antimalarial activity; docking; microwave synthesis; p-aminobenzoic acid.
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