Recent advances in 1,2,3- and 1,2,4-triazole hybrids as antimicrobials and their SAR: A critical review

With the widespread use and sometimes even abuse of antibiotics, the problem of bacterial resistance to antibiotics has become very serious, and it is posing a great threat to global health. Therefore, development of new antibiotics is imperative. Triazoles are five-membered, nitrogen-containing aromatic heterocyclic scaffolds, with two isomeric forms, i.e. 1,2,3-triazole and 1,2,4-triazole. Triazole-containing compounds have a wide range of biological activities such as antibacterial, antifungal, anticancer, antioxidant, antitubercular, antimalarial, anti-HIV, anticonvulsant, anti-inflammatory, antiulcer, analgesic, and etc. The bioactivities and the diversity of triazole-containing drugs have attracted wide interest in these heterocycles. Various antibiotic triazole hybrids have been developed, and most of which have shown potent antimicrobial activities. In this review, we summarized the recent advances in triazole hybrids as potential antibacterial agents and their structure-activity relationships (SARs). The information gained through SAR studies will provide further insights into the development of new triazole antimicrobials.