Antimycobacterial agents. 1. Thio analogues of purine.

Thio analogues of purine, pyridine, and pyrimidine were prepared based on the initial activity screening of several analogues of these heterocycles against Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb). Certain 6-thio-substituted purine analogues described herein showed moderate to good inhibitory activity. In particular, two purine analogues 9-(ethylcarboxymethyl)-6-(decylthio)-9H-purine (20) and 9-(ethylcarboxymethyl)-6-(dodecylthio)-9H-purine (21) exhibited MIC values of 1.56 and 0.78 microg/mL respectively against the Mtb H(37)Rv strain. N(9)-Substitution apparently enhances the antimycobacterial activity in the purine series described herein.