Quinoxalines Potential to Target Pathologies

Abstract

The study of quinoxalines has increased immeasurably during the last two decades, due firstly to their relatively simple chemical synthesis, which has generated a vast variety of compounds with diverse structural modifications, and secondly, to the wide therapeutic potential and biological activities exhibited by this family of compounds. Quinoxalines constitute a rising biomedical class of low-molecular weight heterocyclic compounds with potential functions as antitumour, anti-inflammatory, antibacterial, antiviral, antifungal, antiparasitic and antidiabetic agents, as well as being of interest for the potential treatment of glaucoma, insomnia, cardiovascular and neurological diseases, among others. However, a deeper knowledge of the molecular targets of quinoxalines that fulfil a key role in certain pathologies is required for the development of new and more specific drugs through a rational design strategy to avoid undesirable side effects. In the present review, we summarize the most important molecular targets of the quinoxaline derivatives discovered to date, thus providing a first reference index for researchers to identify the potential targets of their quinoxalines derived collections, which could facilitate the development of new quinoxaline- based therapies.