Development in the Synthesis and Biological Activities of THβ-carboline and Its Analogs: Review

Abstract

1,2,3,4-Tetrahydro-β-carbolines (THβCs) are a large group of natural and synthetic indole alkaloids that possess a common tricyclic pyrido[3,4-b] indole scaffold that are widely distributed in nature. The scaffold and its derivatives are of great interest due to their diverse biological activities and applied in medicine as therapeutic agents. These days, the importance of these compounds in inspiring drug discovery programs is proven and, therefore, their continued synthesis is of great interest. Therefore, this review summarizes the development in their synthetic methods that has been done over the past decades. The review also presents a comprehensive and recent finding on the biological activities of THβCs over the past seven years. The review on β-carbolines might serve as a good reference to promote its inclusion in the planning and synthesis of future drugs

Key words: β-carbolines, indole scaffold