Rhodanines are accepted as advantaged heterocycles in medicinal chemistry as one of the 4-thiazolidinones subtypes. The aim of this paper is to analyze the features of rhodanine and its application in pharmacy and medicine. Some of the properties of rhodanine such as antiviral, anticancer, antimicrobial, and drug discovery have recently been reported. Although there are still vague points in the structure and mechanism of polymerization of this substance, there is a significant increase in the use of rhodanine in medicine. In this review paper, it can be said that we have provided a general overview of the recent advances in the rhodanine-based material which its application is more in the field of drug discovery and anticancer activity. The review starts with a summary of the antiviral activity of rhodanine-based materials and nanocomposites in general. Then in the next step, the detailed description is followed on their applications in the fields of anticancer activity, drug discovery, and an innovative type of rhodanine (RH) and thiohydantoin (TH) derivatives were created and combined in order to recognize tau pathology in the brains of patients with Alzheimer's disease (AD). Through this review, we hope to promote rhodanine and its role in medicine and pharmacy becomes more prominent.
Keywords: HIV; Rhodanine; anticancer activity; antimicrobial activity; drug discovery.