Medicinal chemistry-based perspectives on thiophene and its derivatives: exploring structural insights to discover plausible druggable leads

Abstract

Thiophene is a privileged pharmacophore in medicinal chemistry owing to its diversified biological attributes. The thiophene moiety has been ranked 4th in the US FDA drug approval of small drug molecules, with around 7 drug approvals over the last decade. The present review covers USFDA-approved drugs possessing a thiophene ring system. Our analysis reveals that 26 drugs possessing thiophene nuclei have been approved under different pharmacological classes. The review further covers reported thiophene and its substituted analogues with diverse biological activities, including anti-diabetic, anticancer, anti-inflammatory, anticonvulsant, and antioxidant activity. Besides, a section is dedicated to appreciating the implications of structural bioinformatics in drug discovery. Additionally, the manuscript delves into structure–activity relationship studies to explore the chemical groups responsible for eliciting potential therapeutic activities. The review may provide invaluable insights for researchers working with thiophene nuclei in developing novel analogues with greater efficacy and fewer side effects.