AbstractFour Schiff bases, (3/4/2/4)‐{[(2‐hydroxy‐5‐methylphenyl)imino]methyl}benzene‐1,2/1,3/1,4/1,2‐diols (H3L1‐H3L4), derived from 2,3/2,4/2,5/3,4‐dihydroxybenzaldehydes and 2‐amino‐4‐methylphenol, and their CoCl2, PdCl2, CuCl2 and ZnCl2 complexes were synthesized and characterized. The structures of the complexes were suggested on the basis of elemental analysis, TGA, molar conductivity, magnetic moment, FT‐IR, UV‐vis and NMR spectroscopy. According to the analytical and spectral data, the ligands H3L1, H3L2 and H3L3 acted as tridentate, giving chelate structures in the complexes, via the C=N nitrogen and two phenolate oxygen atoms whereas H3L4 acted as bidentate. In addition, the crystal structure of H3L1 was determined by X‐ray diffraction. The spectral data show that there is keto‐enol tautomerization in the ligands and keto form is dominant in H3L1 and H3L3 while enol form is in H3L2 and H3L4. Antimicrobial activities of the compounds were tested against six bacteria and three fungi. [Zn(H2L1)Cl]⋅4H2O showed superior activity toward the fungi C. albicans, C. parapsilosis and C. tropicalis compared to H3L1 and the other compounds. Strong activity of H3L1, H3L2 and H3L3 was observed toward S. aureus whereas they showed weak activity to the other microorganisms.
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