Advances in Hydrazone Compounds with Anticancer Activity

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

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 25 November 2025 | Viewed by 61

Special Issue Editors


E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Faculty of Pharmacy, Medical University of Sofia, 1000 Sofia, Bulgaria
Interests: hydrazones; anticancer activity; metal complexes; lipophilicity; structure–activity relations

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Pharmacy, Medical University of Sofia, 2 Dunav st., 1000 Sofia, Bulgaria
Interests: drug design; molecular docking; molecular dynamics; Alzheimer’s disease; immunoinformatics
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Hydrazones, characterized by their R-C=N-NH-R' linkage, are attracting widespread attention in medicinal chemistry as a promising class of anticancer agents. Their structural simplicity, synthetic accessibility, and diverse pharmacological activities have prompted extensive research into their anticancer potential. One important trend in this domain is the development of novel hydrazone derivatives with enhanced potency and selectivity, with structural modifications—such as the incorporation of heterocyclic rings, introduction of halogen atoms, and optimization of substituent groups, including methoxy, methyl, and amino groups—serving as strategies. Another means by which to increase activity is to include hydrazones as ligands in various metal complexes. A key area of research is therefore understanding their mechanisms of action. The conjugation of hydrazones with nanoparticles is also being examined to ensure the precise targeting of the tumor while minimizing systemic toxicity and maximizing therapeutic concentration at target sites.

This Special Issue focuses on advances in the design, synthesis, and anticancer activity of novel hydrazones and their metal complexes. Authors are encouraged to contribute original research articles, reviews, and short communications examining hydrazones that selectively target specific cancer hallmarks, leading to improved efficacy and reduced off-target effects.

Dr. Boryana Nikolova-Mladenova
Prof. Dr. Mariyana Atanasova
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

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. Pharmaceuticals is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2900 CHF (Swiss Francs). 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

  • hydrazones
  • lipophilicity
  • logP
  • anticancer activity
  • selectivity

Benefits of Publishing in a Special Issue

  • Ease of navigation: Grouping papers by topic helps scholars navigate broad scope journals more efficiently.
  • Greater discoverability: Special Issues support the reach and impact of scientific research. Articles in Special Issues are more discoverable and cited more frequently.
  • Expansion of research network: Special Issues facilitate connections among authors, fostering scientific collaborations.
  • External promotion: Articles in Special Issues are often promoted through the journal's social media, increasing their visibility.
  • Reprint: MDPI Books provides the opportunity to republish successful Special Issues in book format, both online and in print.

Further information on MDPI's Special Issue policies can be found here.

Published Papers

This special issue is now open for submission.
Back to TopTop