Evaluation of the radical scavenging activity of a series of synthetic hydroxychalcones towards the DPPH radical

Sixteen hydroxychalcones were synthesized in sufficient purity by the Claisen–Schmidt condensation between appropriate acetophenones and aromatic aldehydes. All the compounds were evaluated for their ability to scavenge the stable free 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical. Important structure–activity relationships were observed that strongly contribute to the knowledge for the design of DPPH radical scavenging chalcones. Relevant theoretical parameters were computed in an attempt to understand and explain the obtained experimental results