Coumarins are fused six-membered oxygen-containing benzoheterocycles that join two synthetically useful rings: α-pyrone and benzene. A survey of the literature shows that coumarins and their metal complexes have received great interest from synthetic chemists, medicinal scientists, and pharmacists due to their wide spectrum of biological applications. For instance, coumarin and its derivatives have been used as precursors to prepare a large variety of medicinal agents. Likewise, coumarin-derived imine-metal complexes have been found to display a variety of therapeutic applications, such as antibacterial, antifungal, anticancer, antioxidant, anthelmintic, pesticidal, and nematocidal activities. This review highlights the current synthetic methodologies and known bioactivities of coumarin-derived imine-metal complexes that make this molecule a more attractive scaffold for the discovery of newer drugs.
Keywords: anthelmintic; anticancer; antimicrobial; antioxidant; coumarin-derived imine–metal complexes; pesticidal.