A Review of the Various Synthetic Approaches to Access Aurone Derivatives and their Biological Activities

Aurones, a member of the flavonoid family, have limited occurrence in nature and are relatively less explored than other flavonoids but still constitute a gleaming class of therapeutically significant oxygen heterocyclic molecules with broad-spectrum biological activities. These are secondary plant metabolites and are responsible for glaring pigmentation to various colored parts of the plants. This review covers the comprehensive history of aurones from 1918 to 2020. This review provides a generalized and systematic study of the protocols adopted for synthesizing aurone derivatives and their biological profile. Though there are many review articles on the biological activities of aurones, none of these cover the synthetic aspects of the protocols thoroughly. With the growing number of biologically active natural and synthesized aurones, a massive breakthrough in aurone research has emerged, and it is now one of the most researched O-heterocycles. The present review aims to highlight the work of the researchers on aurones to help synthetic chemists and future generations to design and develop new aurone-based heterocyclic systems of therapeutic potential. This review will also catch the attention of researchers for exploring various other potentials of aurones.