A series of 3-(3-arylacryloyl)anthracen-10(9H)-ones have been synthesized in two steps. In first step, anthracen-10- one (1) underwent Friedal Craft acetylation with acetyl chloride using anhydrous dichloromethane as a solvent and anhydrous powdered aluminum chloride as catalyst. 3-acetylanthracen-10(9H)-one (2) so formed was then dissolved in absolute ethanol and reacted with substituted benzaldehydes in a base catalyzed reaction to form the target compounds (3a-g). Reactions were monitored by thin layer chromatography using different solvent systems. Synthesized compounds were characterized using FTIR, H1-NMR and mass spectroscopic techniques. All the compounds were evaluated for their in vitro antibacterial activity against two Gram positive strains (Bacillus subtilis and Staphylococcus aureus) and two Gram negative strains (Escherichia coli and Pseudomonas aeruginosa) and their minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) were determined taking ciprofloxacin as a standard drug. Some of the compounds showed significant antibacterial activity.
