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Design, Synthesis, and Biological Evaluation of Novel Bioactive Compounds

A special issue of International Journal of Molecular Sciences (ISSN 1422-0067). This special issue belongs to the section "Molecular Pharmacology".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 May 2026 | Viewed by 1094

Special Issue Editors


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Guest Editor
Laboratory of Modern Chemical Synthesis and Technology of Pharmaceutically Active Compounds, Faculty of Medicine, The John Paul II Catholic University of Lublin, Lublin, Poland
Interests: fine organic synthesis; isolation of drug candidates; biologically active compounds of pharmaceutical interest; small bioactive natural products
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Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The revelation of novel bioactive molecules remains a cornerstone of progress in drug discovery, chemical biology, and medical biology. This Special Issue of IJMS aims to provide a platform for the dissemination of innovative research that integrates molecular design, chemical synthesis, and biological evaluation. At the same time, the discovery of new naturally biologically active individual compounds should also be covered by this discussion.

We welcome original research articles, communications, and critical reviews that cover a broad range of topics. These include advances in molecular design and discovery, such as fragment-based drug discovery, rational structure- and ligand-based design, as well as nature-inspired design of bioactive compounds, in conjunction with scaffold modification, bioisosteric design, and the development of hybrid molecules. We also encourage contributions focused on synthetic methodologies, including the development of efficient and sustainable synthetic routes, applying modern catalytic and asymmetric synthesis for the construction of complex bioactive scaffolds of synthetic compounds, as well as natural products and their derivatives. Furthermore, we invite studies on the biological evaluation of bioactive molecules, encompassing in vitro and in vivo assessments of pharmacological, antimicrobial, antiviral, anticancer, and anti-inflammatory activities, as well as investigations into structure–activity relationships (SAR), and research aimed at target identification and elucidation of mechanisms of action.

This Special Issue seeks to highlight interdisciplinary contributions that connect molecular design and chemical innovation with biological insights. We particularly encourage submissions that demonstrate a clear structure–function relationship and advance our understanding of how chemical structure drives biological activity.

Dr. Sara Janowska is the Guest Editor Assistant, and Sara Janowska will help manage this Special Issue.

Prof. Dr. Monika Wujec
Prof. Dr. Oleg M. Demchuk
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. International Journal of Molecular Sciences is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. There is an Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal. For details about the APC please see here. Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • drug design
  • organic compounds
  • heterocyclic compounds
  • synthetic methodologies
  • medicinal chemistry
  • bioactive molecules
  • pharmaceutical applications
  • structure–activity relationships (SARs)
  • organic synthesis
  • natural product

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Published Papers (1 paper)

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Review

63 pages, 7912 KB  
Review
Diversity and Multi-Target Potential of Pyrazole, Imidazole or Triazole Derivatives in Modern Anticancer Therapy
by Martyna Mysłek, Anna Kaczmarek, Piotr Świątek and Żaneta Czyżnikowska
Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2026, 27(10), 4172; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms27104172 - 7 May 2026
Viewed by 247
Abstract
Cancers are intricate and multifactorial diseases. Despite progress in medicine, there are still some obstacles in their treatment due to drug resistance, the toxicity of combination therapy and lack of drug selectivity toward cancer cells. The solution to this may be multi-target directed [...] Read more.
Cancers are intricate and multifactorial diseases. Despite progress in medicine, there are still some obstacles in their treatment due to drug resistance, the toxicity of combination therapy and lack of drug selectivity toward cancer cells. The solution to this may be multi-target directed ligands (MTDLs), which have gained more and more popularity over the years. This review presents a comprehensive overview of novel potential multi-targeted derivatives of nitrogen-containing heterocycles, as imidazole, pyrazole, 1,2,3-triazole and 1,2,4-triazole. The review gathers the selected literature from 2006 to 2026. The analysis focuses on the potency of the inhibitory activity of selected molecules against a variety of molecular targets, as well as on their interactions with protein binding sites. Additionally, the structure-activity relationship (SAR) studies within the collected series are included. The discussion may contribute to the development of new multi-target anticancer agents. Full article
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