Heterocyclic Compounds in Medicinal Chemistry, 2nd Edition

A special issue of Pharmaceuticals (ISSN 1424-8247). This special issue belongs to the section "Medicinal Chemistry".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 25 September 2025 | Viewed by 717

Special Issue Editors


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Istituto Pasteur-Fondazione Cenci Bolognetti, Dipartimento di Chimica e Tecnologie del Farmaco, Sapienza University of Rome, p.le Aldo Moro 5, I-00185 Rome, Italy
Interests: drug design and synthesis; medicinal chemistry; organic synthesis; antimicrobial agents; structure–activity relationship; antiviral agents; antiparasitic agents; anticancer agents; antiprotozoal agents
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Istituto Pasteur-Fondazione Cenci Bolognetti, Dipartimento di Chimica e Tecnologie del Farmaco, Sapienza University of Rome, p.le Aldo Moro 5, I-00185 Rome, Italy
Interests: synthesis of heterocycles; medicinal chemistry; organic chemistry; medicinal chemistry and drug design; medicinal chemistry CNS drug discovery and delivery
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Most of the organic compounds used as therapeutics, as well as intermediates utilized for their synthesis, contain heterocyclic motifs. A heterocycle is a ring with at least one atom that is not carbon. Nitrogen, oxygen, and sulfur are the primary elements seen in common heterocycles, and they play a critical role in drug discovery. Furthermore, there are a plethora of natural products which are heterocycles that serve as the basis for many different substances, including alkaloids, vitamins, hormones, dyes, antibiotics, herbicides, or nutraceuticals. Over the past decades, much attention has been devoted to the development and pharmacological studies of heteroaromatic organic compounds that are currently considered privileged scaffolds for different therapeutic agents. Indeed, they are involved in a wide range of biological activities, representing nearly 60% of all FDA-approved drugs. This Special Issue will publish research papers with topics including, but not limited to, the preparation of aromatic and non-aromatic heterocycles endowed with any biological action. We also welcome contributions that highlight the importance of heterocyclic scaffolds that are widely found in agrochemicals, dyes, cosmetics, and functional materials. The aim of the present Special Issue is primarily to present an overview of the state-of-the-art synthetic methods and recent advances in the synthesis of heterocycles.

This Special Issue is dedicated to the memory of our dearest colleague and friend, Dr. Luca Pescatori, whose entire life, unjustly interrupted prematurely, was devoted not only to the scientific career in the field of medicinal chemistry, but certainly also at cheering up the existence of all those who had the honor of being by his side.

Dr. Valentina Noemi Madia
Dr. Davide Ialongo
Guest Editors

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Keywords

  • heterocycles
  • drug design
  • drug discovery
  • bioactive compounds
  • structure-based drug design
  • structure–activity relationship
  • in silico studies
  • ADMET properties
  • multicomponent reactions
  • phytochemicals

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Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

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32 pages, 2245 KiB  
Article
New Nitrogen, Oxygen and Sulfur-Containing Heterocyclic Compounds as Anti-colon Cancer Agents: Synthesis, Multitargeted Evaluations, Molecular Docking Simulations and ADMET Predictions
by Nahed Nasser Eid El-Sayed, Najeh Krayem, Hamed Ahmed Derbala, Shimaa Kamal, Syde Nasir Abbas Bukhari, Mohamed K. El-Ashrey, Zainab M. Almarhoon, Seham Soliman Alterary and Abir Ben Bacha
Pharmaceuticals 2025, 18(6), 801; https://doi.org/10.3390/ph18060801 (registering DOI) - 27 May 2025
Abstract
Background/Objectives: Oxidative stress, the Warburg effect, and resistance to apoptosis are key hallmarks driving colorectal tumorigenesis. This study aimed to develop novel multi-target compounds capable of modulating these pathways. Methods: A library of 24 newly synthesized compounds—incorporating annulated thiophene, thiazole, quinazolinone, 2-oxoindoline, and [...] Read more.
Background/Objectives: Oxidative stress, the Warburg effect, and resistance to apoptosis are key hallmarks driving colorectal tumorigenesis. This study aimed to develop novel multi-target compounds capable of modulating these pathways. Methods: A library of 24 newly synthesized compounds—incorporating annulated thiophene, thiazole, quinazolinone, 2-oxoindoline, and 1,2,3-oxadiazole scaffolds, as well as N-(1-(4-hydroxy-3-methoxyphenyl)-3-oxo-3-(2-(phenylcarbamothioyl)hydrazineyl) prop-1-en-2-yl)benzamide—was evaluated for antioxidant activity (DPPH assay), PDK-1 and LDHA inhibition, cytotoxic effects against LoVo and HCT-116 colon carcinoma cells, with parallel assessment of safety profiles on normal HUVECs. The underlying anticancer mechanism of the most active compound was investigated through analysis of cell cycle distribution, apoptosis induction, intracellular reactive oxygen species levels, mitochondrial membrane potential disruption, and expression levels of apoptosis-related genes. Molecular docking assessed binding interactions within LDHA and PDK-1 active sites. The physicochemical, drug-likeness, and ADMET properties of the multi-bioactive candidates were predicted in silico. Results: Among the synthesized compounds, thiophenes 3b and 3d exhibited superior PDK-1/LDHA and DPPH/LDHA inhibitions along with significant cytotoxic effects on LoVo and HCT-116 cells (IC50 in µM: 190.3/170.2 and 161.0/156.6), respectively, and minimal cytotoxicity toward HUVECs. Molecular docking revealed favorable interactions with key amino acid residues within the LDHA and/or PDK-1 active sites. Compound 3d notably induced G2/M (LoVo) and G1 (HCT-116) arrest and promoted apoptosis via enhancing ROS generation, modulating Bax/Bcl-2 expressions, disrupting mitochondrial membrane potential, and ultimately activating caspses-3. In silico predictions indicated their promising drug-likeness and pharmacokinetics, though high lipophilicity, poor solubility (especially for 3b), and potential toxicity risks were identified as limitations. Conclusions: Thiophenes 3b and 3d emerged as promising multi-target candidates; however, structural optimization is warranted to enhance their solubility, bioavailability, and safety to support further development as lead anti-colon cancer agents. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Heterocyclic Compounds in Medicinal Chemistry, 2nd Edition)
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26 pages, 6886 KiB  
Review
Nitropyridines in the Synthesis of Bioactive Molecules
by Alexey Starosotnikov and Maxim Bastrakov
Pharmaceuticals 2025, 18(5), 692; https://doi.org/10.3390/ph18050692 - 7 May 2025
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Abstract
Pyridines are one of the most important and promising classes of N-heterocycles actively studied in modern organic and medicinal chemistry; in particular, pyridine is a privileged structural motif in drug design. From a synthetic organic chemistry perspective, nitropyridines can be considered as convenient [...] Read more.
Pyridines are one of the most important and promising classes of N-heterocycles actively studied in modern organic and medicinal chemistry; in particular, pyridine is a privileged structural motif in drug design. From a synthetic organic chemistry perspective, nitropyridines can be considered as convenient and readily available precursors for a wide range of mono- and polynuclear heterocyclic systems demonstrating diverse activities, such as antitumor, antiviral, anti-neurodegenerative, etc. This review is an analysis of the literature on the use of nitropyridines for the synthesis of biologically active compounds, covering the period from 2015 to the present. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Heterocyclic Compounds in Medicinal Chemistry, 2nd Edition)
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