Discovery of Novel Pyrazole Amides as Potent Fungicide Candidates and Evaluation of Their Mode of Action

Antibacterial and antifungal pyrazoles based on different construction strategies

The growing prevalence of microbial infections, and antimicrobial resistance (AMR) stemming from the overuse and misuse of antibiotics, call for novel therapeutic agents, particularly ones targeting resistant microbial strains. Scientists are striving to develop innovative agents to tackle the rising microbial infections and abate the risk of AMR. Pyrazole, a five-membered heterocyclic compound belonging to the azole family, is a versatile scaffold and serves as a core structure in many drugs with antimicrobial and other therapeutic effects. In this review, we have updated pyrazole-based antibacterial and antifungal agents mainly developed between 2016 and 2024, by combining with diverse pharmacophores such as coumarin, thiazole, oxadiazole, isoxazole, indole, etc. Meanwhile, the various strategies (molecular hybridization, bioisosterism, scaffold hopping, multicomponent reactions, and catalyst-free synthesis) for integrating different functional groups with the pyrazole ring are discussed. Additionally, structure-activity relationships of these pyrazole derivatives, i.e., how structural modifications impact their selectivity and therapeutic potential against bacterial and fungal strains, are highlighted. This review provides insights into designing next-generation antimicrobials to combat AMR, and offers valuable perspectives to the scientists working on heterocyclic compounds with diverse bioactivities.

Evaluation of the antifungal activity of novel bis-pyrazole carboxamide derivatives and preliminary investigation of the mechanism

To facilitate the development of novel agricultural succinate dehydrogenase inhibitor (SDHI) fungicides, we synthesized three series of derivatives by introducing phenyl pyrazole fragments into the structure of pyrazol-4-yl amides. The results of the bioactivity assay showed that most of the target compounds possessed varying degrees of inhibitory activity against the tested fungi. At a concentration of 100 mg/L, the compound B8 exhibited effective protective activity against S. sclerotiorum in vivo. Molecular docking analysis and succinate dehydrogenase (SDH) inhibition assay indicated that B8 was not a potential SDHI. The preliminary antifungal mechanism of studies showed that B8 induced a large amount of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and severe lipid peroxidation damage in S. sclerotiorum mycelium, resulting in mycelial rupture and disruption of the integrity of the cell membrane and leakage of soluble proteins, soluble sugars and nucleic acids. Further transcriptome analysis showed that compound B8 blocked various metabolic pathways by downregulating the differentially expressed genes (DEGs) catalase, disrupting hydrogen peroxide hydrolysis, accelerating membrane oxidative damage, and upregulating neutral ceramidase, accelerating sphingolipid metabolism to disrupt cell membrane structure and cell proliferation and differentiation, potentially accelerating cell death. The above results indicated that the potential target of these dis-pyrazole carboxamide derivatives may be the cell membrane of pathogenic fungi.

Application of Difluoromethyl Isosteres in the Design of Pesticide Active Molecules

Difluoromethyl (CF2H) groups have been found in many listed pesticides due to their unique physical and chemical properties and outstanding biological activity. In pesticide molecules, compared with the drastic changes brought by trifluoromethyl, difluoromethyl usually moderately regulates the metabolic stability, lipophilicity, bioavailability, and binding affinity of compounds. Therefore, difluoromethylation has become an effective means to modify the biological activity of pesticide molecules. This paper reviews the representative literatures and patents containing difluoromethyl groups in the past 10 years, and introduces the research progress. The aim is to provide an effective reference value for the study of difluoromethyl in pesticides.

Benzimidazole-acrylonitrile hybrid derivatives act as potent urease inhibitors with possible fungicidal activity

Aim: A series of benzimidazole-acrylonitrile derivatives TM1-TM53 were designed with urease inhibition approach.Materials & methods: TM1-TM53 were synthesized and characterized (1H Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR), 13C NMR, Mass Spectroscopy (MS) and IR) and subjected to urease inhibition assay using commercial assay kit. A molecular docking study was also performed using Autodock tool software.Results: Except six compounds, target molecules exhibited a higher urease inhibition effect (IC50: 1.22-28.45 μM) than hydroxyurea (IC50: 100 μM). kinetic study on TM11, clarified its mode of action as a mixed inhibitor. A molecular docking study on TM6, TM11 and TM21, was performed and the results showed the main residues inside the active site of the enzyme. All TM1-TM53 were also studied in silico using molecular docking techniques to evaluate their potential to inhibit succinate dehydrogenase in comparison to fluxapyroxad as standard. Docking study revealed the high potential of TM1-TM53 as a fungicides.Conclusion: Obtained results exhibited the high activity of benzimidazole-acrylonitrile derivatives as urease inhibitors and their possible potential as fungicide agents. So, it will be beneficial to do more bioactivity investigation on this family of compounds.

Discovery of Novel Pyrazole Acyl Thiourea Skeleton Analogue as Potential Herbicide Candidates

To discover novel transketolase (TKL, EC 2.2.1.1) inhibitors with potential herbicidal applications, a series of pyrazole acyl thiourea derivatives were designed based on a previously obtained pyrazolamide acyl lead compound, employing a scaffold hopping strategy. The compounds were synthesized, their structures were characterized, and they were evaluated for herbicidal activities. The results indicate that 7a exhibited exceptional herbicidal activity against Digitaria sanguinalis and Amaranthus retroflexus at a dosage of 90 g ai/ha, using the foliar spray method in a greenhouse. This performance is comparable to that of commercial products, such as nicosulfuron and mesotrione. Moreover, 7a showed moderate growth inhibitory activity against the young root and stem of A. retroflexus at 200 mg/L in the small cup method, similar to that of nicosulfuron and mesotrione. Subsequent mode-of-action verification experiments revealed that 7a and 7e inhibited Setaria viridis TKL (SvTKL) enzyme activity, with IC50 values of 0.740 and 0.474 mg/L, respectively. Furthermore, they exhibited inhibitory effects on the Brassica napus acetohydroxyacid synthase enzyme activity. Molecular docking predicted potential interactions between these (7a and 7e) and SvTKL. A greenhouse experiment demonstrated that 7a exhibited favorable crop safety at 150 g ai/ha. Therefore, 7a is a promising herbicidal candidate that is worthy of further development.

Design, Synthesis, and Fungicidal Activities of Novel N-(Pyrazol-5-yl)benzamide Derivatives Containing a Diphenylamine Moiety

To accelerate the development of novel fungicides, a variety of N-(pyrazol-5-yl)benzamide derivatives with a diphenylamine moiety were designed and synthesized using a pharmacophore recombination strategy based on the structure of pyrazol-5-yl-aminophenyl-benzamides. The bioassay results demonstrated that most of the target compounds had excellent in vitro antifungal activities against Sclerotinia sclerotiorum, Valsa mali, and Botrytis cinerea. In particular, compound 5IIIh exhibited remarkable activity against S. sclerotiorum (EC50 = 0.37 mg/L), which was similar to that of fluxapyroxad (EC50 = 0.27 mg/L). In addition, compound 5IIIc (EC50 = 1.32 mg/L) was observed to be more effective against V. mali than fluxapyroxad (EC50 = 12.8 mg/L) and comparable to trifloxystrobin (EC50 = 1.62 mg/L). Furthermore, compound 5IIIh demonstrated remarkable in vivo protective antifungal properties against S. sclerotiorum, with an inhibition rate of 96.8% at 100 mg/L, which was close to that of fluxapyroxad (99.6%). Compounds 5IIIc (66.7%) and 5IIIh (62.9%) exhibited good in vivo antifungal effects against V. mali at 100 mg/L, which were superior to that of fluxapyroxad (11.1%) but lower than that of trifloxystrobin (88.9%). The succinate dehydrogenase (SDH) enzymatic inhibition assay was conducted to confirm the mechanism of action. Molecular docking analysis further revealed that compound 5IIIh has significant hydrogen-bonding, π-π, and p-π conjugation interactions with ARG 43, SER 39, TRP 173, and TYR 58 in the binding site of SDH, and the binding mode was similar to that of the commercial fungicide fluxapyroxad. All of the results suggest that compound 5IIIh could be a potential SDH inhibitor, offering a valuable reference for future studies.

Design, Synthesis, Nematicidal, and Fungicidal Activities of Novel Azo and Azoxy Compounds

Bursaphelenchus xylophilus (B. xylophilus) and Meloidogyne are parasitic nematodes that have caused severe ecological and economic damage in pinewood and crops, respectively. Jietacins (jietacin A and B) were found to have excellent biological activity against B. xylophilus. Based on our tremendous demand for chemicals against B. xylophilus, a novel scaffold based on the azo and azoxy groups was designed, and a series of compounds were synthesized. In the bioassay, Ia, IIa, IIc, IId, and IVa exhibited higher activity against B. xylophilus in vitro than avermectin (LC50 = 2.43 μg·mL-1) with LC50 values of 1.37, 1.12, 0.889, 1.56, and 1.10 μg·mL-1, respectively. Meanwhile, Ib, Ic, IIc, and IVa showed good inhibition effects against Meloidogyne in vivo at the concentrations of 80 and 40 μg·mL-1 with inhibition rates of 89.0% and 81.6%, 95.6% and 75.7%, 96.3% and 41.2%, and 86.8% and 78.7%, respectively. In fungicidal activity in vitro, IIb and IVa exhibited excellent effect against Botryosphaeria dothidea with the inhibition of 82.59% and 85.32% at the concentration of 10 μg·mL-1, while the inhibition of Ia was 83.16% against Rhizoctonia solani at the concentration of 12.5 μg·mL-1. Referring to the biological activity against B. xylophilus, a 3D-QASR model was built in which the electron-donating group and small group at the 4-phenylhydrazine were favorable for the activity. In general, the novel azoxy compounds, especially IIc possess great potential for application in the prevention of B. xylophilus.

Synthesis and Biological Activity of Myricetin Derivatives Containing Pyrazole Piperazine Amide

In this paper, a series of derivatives were synthesized by introducing the pharmacophore pyrazole ring and piperazine ring into the structure of the natural product myricetin through an amide bond. The structures were determined using carbon spectrum and hydrogen spectrum high-resolution mass spectrometry. Biological activities of those compounds against bacteria, including Xac (Xanthomonas axonopodis pv. Citri), Psa (Pseudomonas syringae pv. Actinidiae) and Xoo (Xanthomonas oryzae pv. Oryzae) were tested. Notably, D6 exhibited significant bioactivity against Xoo with an EC₅₀ value of 18.8 μg/mL, which was higher than the control drugs thiadiazole-copper (EC₅₀ = 52.9 μg/mL) and bismerthiazol (EC₅₀ = 69.1 μg/mL). Furthermore, the target compounds were assessed for their antifungal activity against ten plant pathogenic fungi. Among them, D1 displayed excellent inhibitory activity against Phomopsis sp. with an EC₅₀ value of 16.9 μg/mL, outperforming the control agents azoxystrobin (EC₅₀ = 50.7 μg/mL) and fluopyram (EC₅₀ = 71.8 μg/mL). In vitro tests demonstrated that D1 possessed curative (60.6%) and protective (74.9%) effects on postharvest kiwifruit. To investigate the active mechanism of D1, its impact on SDH activity was evaluated based on its structural features and further confirmed through molecular docking. Subsequently, the malondialdehyde content of D1-treated fungi was measured, revealing that D1 could increase malondialdehyde levels, thereby causing damage to the cell membrane. Additionally, the EC₅₀ value of D16 on P. capsici was 11.3 μg/mL, which was superior to the control drug azoxystrobin (EC₅₀ = 35.1 μg/mL), and the scanning electron microscopy results indicated that the surface of drug-treated mycelium was ruffled, and growth was significantly affected.

Advancement of Phenoxypyridine as an Active Scaffold for Pesticides

Phenoxypyridine, the bioisostere of diaryl ethers, has been widely introduced into bioactive molecules as an active scaffold, which has different properties from diaryl ethers. In this paper, the bioactivities, structure-activity relationships, and mechanism of compounds containing phenoxypyridine were summarized, which may help to explore the lead compounds and discover novel pesticides with potential bioactivities.

Synthesis, biological activity and toxicity to zebrafish of benzamides substituted with pyrazole-linked 1,2,4-oxadiazole

To find pesticidal lead compounds with high activity, a series of novel benzamides substituted with pyrazole-linked 1,2,4-oxadiazole was designed and synthesized by using the splicing principle of active substructures. The chemical structures of the target compounds were confirmed by 1H NMR, 13C NMR and HRMS. The preliminary bioassay showed that most compounds displayed good larvicidal activities against mosquito larvae at 10 mg L-1. In particular, compound 12g exhibited obvious activity; its lethal rate reached up to 100% (at 5 mg L-1) and 55% (at only 2 mg L-1). Furthermore, compound 12f (70.6%) and 12h (100%) showed good fungicidal activities against Pyricularia oryzae, with EC50 values of 8.28 and 5.49 μg mL-1, respectively, which were superior to that of the control drug bixafen (9.15 μg mL-1). Finally, the LC50 of compound 12h to zebrafish embryo was 0.39 mg L-1, so it was classified as a high-toxic compound. Thus, this compound may be used as a potential lead compound for further structural optimisation to develop new compounds with high activity and low toxicity.

Design, Synthesis, and Evaluation of Novel 4-Chloropyrazole-Based Pyridines as Potent Fungicide Candidates

A rational molecular design approach was developed in our laboratory to guide the discovery of novel sterol biosynthesis inhibitors. Based on the application of bioactivities of heterocyclic rings and molecular docking targeting the sterol biosynthesis 14α-demethylase, a series of 4-chloropyrazole-based pyridine derivatives were rationally designed, synthesized, and characterized and their fungicidal activities were also evaluated. Bioassay results showed that 7e, 7f, and 7m exhibited commendable, diverse antifungal actions that are comparable to those of the positive controls imazalil and triadimefon. The active compounds' mode of action was further studied by microscopy observations, Q-PCR, and enzyme inhibition assay and discovered that target compounds affect fungal sterol biosynthesis via disturbing RcCYP51 enzyme system. These findings support that their fungicidal mode of action still targets the cytochrome P450-dependent 14α-demethylase as the molecular design did at first. The above results strongly suggest that our rational molecular design protocol is not only practical but also efficient.