An Insight into Pyrazole-containing Compounds: Synthesis and Pharmacological Activities

Background: Heterocyclic scaffolds have gained exceptional devotion in recent years due to their marked utility in the bio-organic field. Among these, pyrazole remains a privileged scaffold as a broad array of medicinally active agents encompass this heterocycle as a core nucleus. Pyrazole is a five-membered, aromatic ring containing two nitrogen atoms at adjacent positions that are readily able to show interactions with numerous receptor(s) and enzymes located on the target cells in the biological system. Pyrazole-containing compounds are acknowledged with anticyclooxygenases (anti-inflammatory), carbonic anhydrase inhibitor, α- glycosidase inhibitor, cholinesterase enzymes inhibitor, and anti-DNA gyrases activities. Noticeably, rimonabant, phenylbutazone, fipronil, difenamizole, celecoxib, antipyrine, fezolamide, and betazole are a few representatives of pyrazole-containing drugs. Objectives: The manuscript aims to review the detailed synthetic approaches applied to the synthesis of pyrazole derivatives. In particular, we examine recent scientific findings on antimicrobial, anti-tubercular, antiviral, anticancer, and anti-inflammatory perspectives of pyrazolecontaining analogues. Methods: Pyrazole analogues have been widely explored by the scientific community as many papers have been published in this regard. Numerous pyrazole-containing analogues have been designed, synthesized, and screened for their in vitro and in vivo bio-efficacy, and many of them are endowed with commendable pharmacological activities. Pyrazole analogues with improved antiviral, anticancer, and anti-inflammatory efficacy have also been well documented in patents granted to this heterocyclic nucleus. Results: This review outlines the recent advances in medicinal chemistry of pyrazole analogues with a special emphasis on structure-activity relationships to afford ideas for rational drug design and discovery and their impact on desired pharmacological applications. Conclusion: The information provided in this manuscript may help medicinal chemists to generate robust pyrazole analogues with high efficacy.