Recent Advances in the Development of "Curcumin Inspired" Compounds as New Therapeutic Agents

Despite a huge body of research in the past two decades investigating the antioxidant, antiinflammatory, anti-microbial, and anti-carcinogenic properties of curcumin (CUR), a CUR-based antitumor drug is yet to be developed. Lack of success in achieving this goal stems from CUR's unfavorable biophysicochemical features, particularly poor solubility, low bioavailability, and rapid metabolism, coupled with a complex biological profile making it difficult to determine its mechanism of action. A significant body of literature aimed at improving its physicochemical properties through synthesis or by designing delivery methods has been published, and the progress in these areas has been reviewed. The present review aims to summarize recent progress in the synthesis of structurally diverse "curcumin-inspired" compounds along with computational docking and bioassay studies, through which a number of promising analogs have been identified that warrant further study.