Coumarin as a Prominent Lead Nucleus, by Virtue of its Diversity in Bioactivity and Therapeutic Potential in Present Scenario of Chemical and Pharmaceutical Research

Barve, Ashutosh

Journal of Medical Biomedical and Applied Sciences
Vol 4 (2016)

Coumarins are well-known natural products displaying a broad range of biological activities1. Many naturally occurring as well as synthetic derivatives of coumarin have been found to possess diverse biological activities namely anticoagulant2, spasmolytic3, anthelmintic4, diuretic5 and anti-inflammatory6 activities. 4-Pyridyl and 4-piperidyl coumarin have been found to exhibit CNS depressant and analgesic activities in animal models7-9. The halogenated furanyl coumarins show antimicrobial action10, whereas isoxazolinyl and oxadiazolyl coumarins 11 inhibit enzymes like glucouronidase and 1, 2-lipoxygenase. Further, 2-biheterocyclic benzofurans with furan12, chromone13 ring systems exhibit antibacterial, psychotropic and anti-inflammatory properties.