Tetrazoles are synthetic heterocycles with numerous applications in organic chemistry, coordination chemistry, the photographic industry, explosives, and, in particular, medicinal chemistry. In organic chemistry, 5‐substituted tetrazoles are used as advantageous intermediates in the synthesis of other heterocycles and as activators in oligonucleotide synthesis. In drug design, 5‐monosubstituted tetrazoles are the most important tetrazole derivatives because they represent non‐classical bioisosteres of carboxylic acids, with similar acidities but higher lipophilicities and metabolic resistance. In this review we focus on the preparation and further functionalization of these heterocycles. Firstly, the role of 5‐substituted tetrazoles in medicinal chemistry is described, including examples of their effects on pharmacokinetics, pharmacodynamics, and metabolism of the associated drugs. Then, the main synthetic approaches to 5‐substituted tetrazoles – consisting of methods based on acidic media/proton catalysis, Lewis acids, and organometallic or organosilicon azides – are presented, from the early procedures to the most recent ones, with special attention paid to the reaction mechanisms. Functionalization of 5‐substituted tetrazoles is a challenging task because it usually leads to the formation of two isomers, 1,5‐ and 2,5‐disubstituted tetrazoles, in various ratios. In this overview, reactions with high or unusual regioselectivities are described, with comments on the possible mechanisms. Microwave‐assisted approaches to the synthesis and functionalization of 5‐substituted tetrazoles are also included.

Ceramides are essential constituents of the skin barrier that allow humans to live on dry land. Reduced levels of ceramides have been associated with skin diseases, e.g., atopic dermatitis. However, the structural requirements and mechanisms of action of ceramides are not fully understood. Here, we report the effects of ceramide acyl chain length on the permeabilities and biophysics of lipid membranes composed of ceramides (or free sphingosine), fatty acids, cholesterol, and cholesterol sulfate. Short-chain ceramides increased the permeability of the lipid membranes compared to a long-chain ceramide with maxima at 4-6 carbons in the acyl. By a combination of differential scanning calorimetry, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, Langmuir monolayers, and atomic force microscopy, we found that the reason for this effect in short ceramides was a lower proportion of tight orthorhombic packing and phase separation of continuous short ceramide-enriched domains with shorter lamellar periodicity compared to native long ceramides. Thus, long acyl chains in ceramides are essential for the formation of tightly packed impermeable lipid lamellae. Moreover, the model skin lipid membranes are a valuable tool to study the relationships between the lipid structure and composition, lipid organization, and the membrane permeability.

Herein, we report the discovery and structure−activity relationships of 5-substituted-2-[(3,5-dinitrobenzyl)sulfanyl]-1,3,4-oxadiazoles and 1,3,4-thiadiazoles as a new class of antituberculosis agents. The majority of these compounds exhibited outstanding in vitro activity against Mycobacterium tuberculosis CNCTC My 331/88 and six multidrug-resistant clinically isolated strains of M. tuberculosis, with minimum inhibitory concentration values as low as 0.03 μM (0.011−0.026 μg/ mL). The investigated compounds had a highly selective antimycobacterial effect because they showed no activity against the other bacteria or fungi tested in this study. Furthermore, the investigated compounds exhibited low in vitro toxicities in four proliferating mammalian cell lines and in isolated primary human hepatocytes. Several in vitro genotoxicity assays indicated that the selected compounds have no mutagenic activity. The oxadiazole and thiadiazole derivatives with the most favorable activity/ toxicity profiles also showed potency comparable to that of rifampicin against the nonreplicating streptomycin-starved M. tuberculosis 18b-Lux strain, and therefore, these derivatives, are of particular interest.

Ceramides (Cer) are the central molecules in sphingolipid metabolism that participate in cellular signaling and also prevent excessive water loss by the skin. Previous studies showed that sphingosine-based Cer with a long 16C chain (CerNS16) and very long 24C-chain ceramides (CerNS24) differ in their biological actions. Increased levels of long CerNS16 at the expense of the very long CerNS24 have been found in atopic dermatitis patients, and this change correlated with the skin barrier properties. To probe the membrane behavior of the long CerNS16 and the very long chain CerNS24, we studied their interactions with fatty acids and cholesterol in model stratum corneum membranes using infrared spectroscopy. Using Cer with deuterated acyls and/or deuterated fatty acids, we showed differences in lipid mixing, packing, and thermotropic phase behavior between long and very long Cer. These differences were observed in the presence of lignoceric acid or a heterogeneous fatty acid mixture (C16-C24), in the presence or absence of cholesterol sulfate, and at 5-95% humidity. In these membranes, very long CerNS24 prefers an extended (splayed-chain) conformation in which the fatty acid is associated with the very long Cer chain. In contrast, the shorter CerNS16 and fatty acids are mostly phase separated.

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Skin penetration/permeation enhancers are compounds that improve (trans)dermal drug delivery. We designed hybrid terpene-amino acid enhancers by conjugating natural terpenes (citronellol, geraniol, nerol, farnesol, linalool, perillyl alcohol, menthol, borneol, carveol) or cinnamyl alcohol with 6-(dimethylamino)hexanoic acid through a biodegradable ester linker. The compounds were screened for their ability to increase the delivery of theophylline and hydrocortisone through and into human skin ex vivo. The citronellyl, bornyl and cinnamyl esters showed exceptional permeation-enhancing properties (enhancement ratios up to 82) while having low cellular toxicities. The barrier function of enhancer-treated skin (assessed by transepidermal water loss and electrical impedance) recovered within 24 h. Infrared spectroscopy suggested that these esters fluidized the stratum corneum lipids. Furthermore, the citronellyl ester increased the epidermal concentration of topically applied cidofovir, which is a potent antiviral and anticancer drug, by 15-fold. In conclusion, citronellyl 6-(dimethylamino)hexanoate is an outstanding enhancer with an advantageous combination of properties, which may improve the delivery of drugs that have a limited ability to cross biological barriers.

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We report herein the discovery of 3,5-dinitrophenyl 1,2,4-triazoles with excellent and selective antimycobacterial activities against Mycobacterium tuberculosis strains, including clinically isolated multidrug-resistant strains. Thorough structure–activity relationship studies of 3,5-dinitrophenyl-containing 1,2,4-triazoles and their trifluoromethyl analogues revealed the key role of the position of the 3,5-dinitrophenyl fragment in the antitubercular efficiency. Among the prepared compounds, the highest in vitro antimycobacterial activities against M. tuberculosis H37Rv and against seven clinically isolated multidrug-resistant strains of M. tuberculosis were found with S-substituted 4-alkyl-5-(3,5-dinitrophenyl)-4H-1,2,4-triazole-3-thiols and their 3-nitro-5-(trifluoromethyl)­phenyl analogues. The minimum inhibitory concentrations of these compounds reached 0.03 μM, which is superior to all the current first-line anti-tuberculosis drugs. Furthermore, almost all compounds with excellent antimycobacterial activities exhibited very low in vitro cytotoxicities against two proliferating mammalian cell lines. The docking study indicated that these compounds acted as the inhibitors of decaprenylphosphoryl-β-d-ribofuranose 2′-oxidase enzyme, which was experimentally confirmed by two independent radiolabeling experiments.