A series of novel glycosyl thiazol-2-imines (3a-g) have been synthesized regioselectively in good yields from the hydrolysis of thiazol-2(3H)-imine-linked glycoconjugates. The glycosyl thiazol-2-imines were evaluated for their antitumor activity against Hela (cervical carcinoma), HCT-8 (colon carcinoma) and Bel-7402 (liver carcinoma). Among the compounds screened, 1-benzoyl-4-(4-nitrophenyl)-3-beta-D-glucopyranosyl-thiazol-2(3H)-imine (3c) was found to be the most active compound against HCT-8. Crown Copyright (C) 2009 Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.