Abstract

A number of thiazole derived tridentate Schiff-bases (LH) and its metal chelates of the type [M(L)2X] where M=Ni(II), Cu(II) and Zn(II), L=substituted salicylaldehyde (5-H, 5-CH3, 5-OCH3, 5-NO2 and 5-Cl) and X=CI have been synthesized and characterized with the help of elemental analyses, conductivity measurements, magnetic moments, UV-Vis, IR and NMR spectral data. An octahedral structure for Ni(II) and Zn(II) and a distorted octahedral structure for Cu(II) chelates have been proposed. All the Schiff-bases and their metal chelates have been screened for their biological activity against Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureous , Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Klebsiella pneumonae and in comparison, the metal chelates have been shown to possess more antibacterial activity than the uncomplexed Schiff-bases.