Tailor-made amino acids in the design of small-molecule blockbuster drugs

Abstract

The role of amino acids (AAs) in modern health industry is well-appreciated. Residues of individual AAs, or their chemical modifications, such as diamines and amino alcohols, are frequently found in the structures of modern pharmaceuticals. The goal of this review article, is to emphasize that, currently, tailor-made AAs serve as key structural features in many most successful pharmaceuticals, so-called blockbuster drugs. In the present article, we profile 14 small-molecule drugs, underscoring the breadth of structural variety of AAs applications in numerous therapeutic areas. For each compound, we provide spectrum of biological activity, medicinal chemistry discovery, and synthetic approaches.

Keywords: Amino-alcohols; Asymmetric synthesis; Blockbuster drugs; Diamines; Drug design and development; Modern pharmaceuticals; Small-molecule drugs; Tailor-made amino acids.