Comparative Biological Evaluation of Quinoline Derivatives Against Tuberculosis and Cancer: An Experimental Study

Abstract

Background: Tuberculosis (TB) and cancer are two of the major health problems in the world, in which the emergence of resistant drugs and limitations of treatment have led to the need for new therapeutic agents. Quinoline derivatives are very interesting pharmacophores because of their wide range of bioactivities. Objective: In order to compare the anti-tubercular and anticancer activities of the synthesized quinoline derivatives and find some promising lead molecules for further development.
Methods: Standardized biological screening was performed on synthesized quinoline derivatives against the model of Mycobacterium tuberculosis and cancer. These were compared with the standard reference drugs in terms of their biological activities. Structure–activity relationship (SAR) analysis and statistical evaluation were carried out to elucidate the effects of structural modification on the biological efficacy. Results: The biological activity of the quinoline derivatives was found to be variable depending upon the structural features. QD-4 and QD-6 exhibited the most interesting dual anti-tubercular and anticancer activity, while the other two compounds, QD-2 and QD-6, exhibited increased anti-tubercular activity and QD-3 and QD-8 showed increased anticancer activity. Overall biological performance was enhanced by electron-withdrawing substituents and aromatic modifications, with statistically significant differences (p < 0.05) between the derivatives. Conclusion: The study underscores the fact that quinoline derivatives are promising multi-functional scaffolds for drug development against anti-tubercular and anti-cancer agents. The compounds identified here are promising candidates which should be studied further in terms of mechanism of action, pharmacokinetics and in vivo studies to establish their therapeutic relevance.