Synthesis and antiviral activities of novel penta-1,4-diene-3-one oxime derivatives bearing a pyridine moiety

A series of novel penta-1,4-diene-3-one oxime ether derivatives bearing a pyridine moiety were designed and synthesized, and their antiviral activities against tobacco mosaic virus (TMV) were evaluated. The results of the biological assay indicated that most of the title compounds exhibit good antiviral activities against TMV at 500 mu g/mL. In particular, the title compounds 5c, 5j, 5o and 5p showed remarkable curative activities against TMV, with EC50 values of 274.8, 299.2, 251.8 and 287.7 mu g/mL, respectively, which were superior to that of ribavirin (379.8 mu g/mL). This study indicates that penta-1,4-diene-3-one oxime ether derivatives bearing a pyridine moiety can serve as potential alternative templates in the search for novel, highly efficient, anti-plant viral agents.