Abstract

Background: Thioureas are widely used as intermediates in organic synthesis, and they are commonly used in several classes of heterocycles.

Objective: There has been an escalating interest in the development of heterocycles employing thioureas as building blocks. Furthermore, thioureas can be utilized as a reagent in a synthesis of a large number of therapeutic agents. In addition, substituted thioureas have recently gained much interest in the preparation of a wide variety of biologically active compounds.

Conclusion: This review highlights the status of thiourea scaffolds in the drug development and heterocyclic synthesis described in the literature mainly since 2010.

Keywords: Thiourea, heterocyclic synthesis, building blocks, drug design, pharmacological effects, multicomponent reactions.

Graphical Abstract