Search for Articles:
Title / Keyword
Author / Affiliation / Email
Journal
Article Type
 
 
Advanced Search
 
Section
Special Issue
Volume
Issue
Number
Page
 
9.2
4.8
Journals
Biomolecules
Special Issues
Heterocyclic Compounds: Synthesis, Characterization, and Validation
share announcement

Heterocyclic Compounds: Synthesis, Characterization, and Validation

A special issue of Biomolecules (ISSN 2218-273X). This special issue belongs to the section "Chemical Biology".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 July 2026 | Viewed by 752

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Monika Pitucha

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Independent Radiopharmacy Unit, Faculty of Pharmacy, Medical University of Lublin, 20-093 Lublin, Poland
Interests: medicinal chemistry; organic synthesis; heterocycles; anticancer activity; antimicrobial activity; SAR
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

This Special Issue highlights interdisciplinary research on heterocyclic compounds, which play a key role in organic chemistry, medicinal chemistry, molecular biology, and medical sciences. This Special Issue aims to present the latest advances in the following areas: Innovative synthetic methods, encompassing both classical approaches and strategies utilizing catalysis, flow chemistry, electrochemical methods, photochemical methods, and microwave- or ultrasound-assisted synthesis. Structural and spectroscopic characterization, employing techniques such as NMR, MS, IR, UV-Vis, X-ray structural analysis, and computational methods (DFT and molecular docking), supporting the analysis of physicochemical properties. Biological and medical applications, including the design and evaluation of potential anticancer, antibacterial, antiviral, anti-inflammatory, and neuroprotective drugs, as well as compounds used in imaging diagnostics (e.g., radiopharmaceuticals). Biological and pharmacological validation, including in vitro and in vivo studies, assessment of toxicity, bioavailability, selectivity of action, molecular mechanisms, and translational potential for preclinical and clinical studies. This Special Issue also welcomes review articles that synthesize the current state of knowledge and suggest directions for further research in this dynamically developing field.

Dr. Monika Pitucha
Guest Editor

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 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

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. Biomolecules 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 2700 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

  • heterocyclic compounds
  • synthesis
  • spectroscopy
  • molecular modeling
  • biological activity
  • radiopharmaceuticals

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 (2 papers)

Download All Papers
Order results
Result details
Show export options expand_more Show export options expand_less
Select all
Export citation of selected articles as:

Research

21 pages, 2679 KB  
Article
Novel Dorsomorphin Derivatives: Molecular Modeling, Synthesis, and Bioactivity Evaluation
by Evangelia N. Tzanetou, Sandra Liekens, Konstantinos M. Kasiotis, Nikolas Fokialakis, Nikolaos Tsafantakis, Raul SanMartin, Haralampos Tzoupis, Konstantinos D. Papavasileiou, Antreas Afantitis and Serkos A. Haroutounian
Biomolecules 2026, 16(1), 145; https://doi.org/10.3390/biom16010145 - 14 Jan 2026
Viewed by 198
Abstract
Dorsomorphin, a pyrazolo[1,5-a]pyrimidine derivative, inhibits the bone morphogenetic protein (BMP) pathway by targeting the type I BMP receptors active in receptor-like kinases. However, the investigation of its—and its derivatives’—antiproliferative activity towards endothelial and cancer cell lines still requires reinforcement with additional [...] Read more.
Dorsomorphin, a pyrazolo[1,5-a]pyrimidine derivative, inhibits the bone morphogenetic protein (BMP) pathway by targeting the type I BMP receptors active in receptor-like kinases. However, the investigation of its—and its derivatives’—antiproliferative activity towards endothelial and cancer cell lines still requires reinforcement with additional studies. In the presented work, several dorsomorphin derivatives have been efficiently synthesized, based on a previously reported synthetic protocol with minor modifications. The endeavor was reinforced by a molecular docking study on the interactions of the designed derivatives with various protein targets, while the inhibitory effects of the synthesized novel molecules on the proliferation of murine leukemia cells (L1210), human T-lymphocyte cells (CEM), human cervix carcinoma cells (HeLa), and endothelial cells (human dermal microvascular, HMEC-1, and bovine aortic endothelial cells, BAECs) were investigated. Among the compounds tested, diphenol 22, emerged as the most promising bioactive lead since it demonstrated half-maximal inhibitory concentration (IC50) values below 9 μM in all tested lines except HeLa cells. In the same context, the carbamate derivative 6 was determined as a potent inhibitor of endothelial cell proliferation in BAECs at a low micromolar range. In conclusion, the presented work not only reveals promising antiproliferative dorsomorphin derivatives but also sets the basis for further exploitation of dorsomorphin’s bioactive portfolio, based on bioactivity results and molecular modeling calculations. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Heterocyclic Compounds: Synthesis, Characterization, and Validation)
►▼ Show Figures

Figure 1

24 pages, 3174 KB  
Article
Synthesis and Bioactivity Assessment of Novel Quinolinone–Triazole Hybrids
by Ioanna Kostopoulou, Maria-Anna Karadendrou, Manolis Matzapetakis, Maria Zervou, Georgia-Eirini Deligiannidou, Christos Kontogiorgis, Eleni Pontiki, Dimitra Hadjipavlou-Litina and Anastasia Detsi
Biomolecules 2026, 16(1), 29; https://doi.org/10.3390/biom16010029 - 24 Dec 2025
Viewed by 346
Abstract
Click chemistry, and particularly the Cu-catalyzed Azide Alkyne Cycloaddition (CuAAC) reaction has gained increased attention in recent years as an invaluable tool for synthesizing pharmaceutical active organic compounds. In this study, quinolinones and triazoles, two bioactive heterocyclic moieties amenable to various substitutions, were [...] Read more.
Click chemistry, and particularly the Cu-catalyzed Azide Alkyne Cycloaddition (CuAAC) reaction has gained increased attention in recent years as an invaluable tool for synthesizing pharmaceutical active organic compounds. In this study, quinolinones and triazoles, two bioactive heterocyclic moieties amenable to various substitutions, were employed to design and synthesize novel quinolinone–triazole hybrid molecules via the CuAAC click reaction under microwave irradiation. The synthesized hybrid molecules and their alkyne precursors were structurally characterized and evaluated for their antioxidant capacity, lipoxygenase (LOX) inhibitory activity, cell viability using HaCaT epithelial cells, and cytotoxicity against two cancer lines. The results indicated that, among the precursors, alkyne 4c exhibits the best combined antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activity (100% lipid peroxidation inhibition, IC50 = 22.5 μM for LOX inhibition); among the hybrid molecules, compound 5a was the most potent (98.0% lipid peroxidation inhibition, IC50 = 10.0 μM for LOX inhibition). Regarding the assessment of HaCaT cell viability, all studied compounds showed encouraging results, with cell viability rates between 61.5% and 100%. Moreover, based on the results of the cytotoxicity against cancer lines A549 and A375, it emerged that the tested compounds exhibited moderate–low or no cytotoxicity. These results highlight the potential of quinolinone–triazole hybrids as valuable candidates in drug discovery. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Heterocyclic Compounds: Synthesis, Characterization, and Validation)
►▼ Show Figures

Figure 1

Show export options expand_more Show export options expand_less
Select all
Export citation of selected articles as:
 
Displaying articles 1-2
Back to TopTop