Thienopyrimidines as novel inhibitors of Mycobacterium tuberculosis: synthesis and in-vitro studies.

A series of novel 5,6-unsubstituted thieno-[2,3-d]-pyrimidines has been synthesized and tested for growth inhibition of Mycobacterium tuberculosis H37Rv. Of twelve compounds synthesized eleven have shown antimycobacterial activity that differs in potency. Compounds 7b, 7c, 7d, 7e, 7f, and 7g exhibited good antimycobacterial activity. MIC values of the compounds tested were comparable with pyrazinamide. Six compounds which have shown good antimycobacterial activity were also subjected for cytotoxicity studies and were found to possess poor cytotoxicity. The study indicates the definite need for focusing attention on thienopyrimidines for further lead optimization.