Novel new research strategies of hydantoin derivatives: A review

A non-aromatic five membered heterocycle known as hydantoin, imidazolidine-2,4-dione, is regarded as a desirable, preferred scaffold in medicinal chemistry. In addition to phenytoin, Nitrofurantoin, and Enzalutamide, the importance of the hydantoin scaffold in drug discovery has been supported by a number of medications currently in use. Hydantoin has two hydrogen bond acceptors and two hydrogen bond donors among its five possible substituent sites. Because they display a variety of biological and pharmacological activity in therapeutic and agrochemical applications, hydantoin and the hybrids they form with other molecules represent a particularly significant group of heterocycles. Additionally, they play a crucial role in the chemical or enzymatic synthesis of important, non-natural -amino acids and their conjugates that have potential medical applications. The production of hydantoin using the Bucherer-Bergs reaction is thoroughly discussed in this article, although it is only applicable to free carbonyl compounds or carbonyl compounds protected as acetals (ketals) and cyanohydrins used as starting reaction components. In this respect, the Bucherer–Bergs reaction provides an efficient and simple method in the synthesis of important natural products as well as for the preparation of new organic compounds applicable as potential therapeutics. The scope and limitations, as well as a comparison with some other methods for preparing hydantoin, are also discussed