Recent development of potent analogues of oxazolidinone antibacterial agents

The oxazolidinones are a new and potent class of antimicrobial agents with activity mainly against Gram-positive strains. The commercial success of linezolid, the only FDA-approved oxazolidinone, has prompted many pharmaceutical companies to devote resources to this area of investigation. Until now, four types of chemical modifications of linezolid and oxazolidinone-type antibacterial agents, including modification on each of the A-(oxazolidinone), B-(phenyl), and C-(morpholine) rings as well as the C-5 side chain of the A-ring substructure, have been described. Division into sections according to side chain modification or the type of ring will be used throughout this review, although the process of synthesis usually involves the simultaneous modification of several elements of the linezolid substructure; therefore, assignment into the appropriate section depends on the structure-activity relationships (SAR) studies. This review makes an attempt to summarise the work carried out in the period from 2006 until mid-2012.