The 6-amino-1,3-dimethyl
uracil-based azo derivative (p-carboxy phenylazouracil,
L11) undergoes Cu(II)-catalyzed cyclization
to a triazole derivative, namely, 1,3-dimethyl-8-(p-carboxy phenyl) azapurine (L11P). Interestingly, the azo functionality
of L11 undergoes both symmetrical and asymmetrical reductive cleavage
at two different reaction conditions. The chloride salts of Mn(II),
Ni(II), and Pd(II) catalyze reductive cleavage of an azo moiety in
an asymmetric manner, producing a new uracil hydrazine derivative
(A3). On the other hand, hydrazine catalyzes symmetrical reductive
cleavage of the azo moiety of L11, resulting in 5,6-diamino-1,3-dimethyl
uracil (A2) along with the starting p-aminobenzoic
acid (A1). Time-dependent density functional theoretical (TD-DFT)
studies provide optimized geometries of L11, L11P, and A3 along with
their orbital energies. The L11 and L11P bind firmly to genomic DNA
of E. coli with a site size n ∼
9 and n ∼ 8. The L11P shows anticancer activity
on selected murine lymphoma cancer cell lines (DL, YAC1, and 2PK3).
In addition, its antiproliferative activity is measured with several
cancer cell lines and found hemocompatible toward blood cells. Corresponding
molecular docking studies of L11P with caspase-3 (cysteine-aspartic
proteases) unlock their mode of interaction.