1,2,4-Oxadiazoles have emerged as a significant class of heterocyclic compounds in medicinal chemistry due to their diverse biological activities and versatile applications in drug discovery. Herein is reported an in-depth analysis of the structural properties, synthetic methodologies, and pharmacological significance of 1,2,4-oxadiazoles. The compound's unique five-membered ring containing three heteroatoms offers remarkable stability and tunable physicochemical properties, making it an attractive scaffold for the development of novel therapeutic agents, as confirmed by already approved drugs. The review highlights the broad spectrum of biological activities associated with 1,2,4-oxadiazoles, including antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory, anticancer, antiviral, and central nervous system related activities. These diverse effects underscore the scaffold's potential for targeting multiple disease pathways. Several studies demonstrate that structural modifications on the oxadiazole ring can significantly influence its pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic profiles, enabling the design of selective and potent drug candidates. Additionally, it has explored recent advances in synthetic strategies for constructing the 1,2,4-oxadiazole core, such as cyclization reactions involving amidoximes, nitrile oxides, and other precursors. Modern approaches using transition-metal catalysis, microwave-assisted synthesis, and green chemistry techniques are also discussed, emphasizing their importance in improving efficiency and scalability for pharmaceutical applications. Furthermore, the role of 1,2,4-oxadiazole as bioisostere replacement for esters and amides is highlighted, particularly in enhancing metabolic stability and modulating target selectivity. Application of computational methods, including molecular docking and QSAR modeling, have been also covered in understanding ligand-receptor interactions and guiding lead optimization. This review underscores the growing prominence of 1,2,4-oxadiazoles in modern drug design and their potential to address unmet medical needs. With continued research and innovation, these scaffolds are poised to play a pivotal role in the next generation of therapeutic agents across multiple disease areas.

Series of 1,3-disubstituted ureas and diadamantyl disubstituted diureas with fluorinated and chlorinated adamantane residues were shown to inhibit human soluble epoxide hydrolase (sEH) with inhibition potency ranging from 40 pM to 9.2 nM. The measured IC₅₀ values for some molecules were below the accuracy limit of the existing in vitro assays. Such an increase in activity was achieved by minimal structural modifications to the molecules of known inhibitors, including 4-[trans-4-(1-adamantylcarbamoylamino)cyclohexyl]oxybenzoic acid. For the chlorinated homologue of the latter the sharp jump in inhibitory activity can be (according to molecular dynamics data) the result of interactions - Cl-π interaction. Considering the extremely high inhibitory activity, acceptable solubility and partial blockage of metabolically sensitive centres in their structures, some compounds are of interest for further in vivo biotesting.

Soluble epoxide hydrolase (sEH) is an enzyme involved in the metabolism of bioactive lipid signaling molecules. sEH converts epoxyeicosatrienoic acids (EET) to virtually inactive dihydroxyeicosatrienoic acids (DHET). The first acids are “medicinal” molecules, the second increase the inflammatory infiltration of cells. Mitogen-activated protein kinases (p38 MAPKs) are key protein kinases involved in the production of inflammatory mediators, including tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) and cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2). p38 MAPK signaling plays an important role in the regulation of cellular processes, especially inflammation. The proto-oncogenic serine/threonine protein kinase Raf (c-Raf) is a major component of the mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) pathway: ERK1/2 signaling. Normal cellular Raf genes can also mutate and become oncogenes, overloading the activity of MEK1/2 and ERK1/2. The development of multitarget inhibitors is a promising strategy for the treatment of socially dangerous diseases. We synthesized 1,3-disubstituted ureas and diureas containing a dichloroadamantyl moiety. The results of computational methods show that soluble epoxide hydrolase inhibitors can act on two more targets in different signaling pathways of mitogen-activated protein kinases p38 MAPK and c-Raf. The two chlorine atoms in the adamantyl moiety may provide additional Cl-π interactions in the active site of human sEH. Molecular dynamics studies have shown that the stability of ligand–protein complexes largely depends on the “spacer effect.” The compound containing a bridge between the chloroadamantyl fragment and the ureide group forms more stable ligand–protein complexes with sEH and p38 MAPK, which indicates a better conformational ability of the molecule in the active sites of these targets. In turn, a compound containing two chlorine atoms forms a more stable complex with c-Raf, probably due to the presence of additional halogen bonds of chlorine atoms with amino acid residues.

A series of N,N′-disubstituted ureas and bis-ureas were synthesized in 36–85% yields by the reaction 3-bromoadamantan-1-yl isocyanate with α,ω-alkanediamines, fluorinated anilines, and trans-4-[(4-aminocyclo­hexyl)oxy]benzoic acid. The hydrolysis of 3-bromoadamant-1-yl isocyanate in the presence of a catalytic amount of DBU gave 60% of symmetrical N,N′-bis(3-bromoadamantan-1-yl)urea. The synthesized compounds are promising as inhibitors of human soluble epoxide hydrolase (hsEH).

A procedure has been developed for the synthesis of 3,5-difluoroadamantan-1-yl isocyanate from 3,5-difluoroadamantane-1 carboxylic acid and diphenylphosphoryl azide using a new fluorinating agent, Ishikawa reagent, in one stage of the synthesis. The reaction of 3,5-difluoroadamantan-1-yl isocyanate with aliphatic diamines and trans-4-[(4-aminocyclohexyl)oxy]benzoic acid afforded a series of N,N′-disubstituted ureas and bis-ureas in 43–96% yields. The hydrolysis of 3,5-difluoroadamantan-1-yl isocyanate in the presence of a catalytic amount of DBU gave symmetrical N,N′-bis(3,5-difluoroadamantan-1-yl)urea in 47% yield. A relation between the number of fluorine atoms in the adamantane fragment on the melting points and lipophilicities of the synthesized ureas has been revealed, which makes it possible to control these important properties of ureas as potential enzyme inhibitors.

A series of 1,3-disubstituted ureas and diureas was synthesized by the reaction of (3-bromoadamantan-1-yl)isocyanate with aliphatic diamines, fluorine-containing anilines, and trans-4-amino-(cyclohexyloxy)benzoic acid in 36–85% yields. Hydrolysis of (3-bromoadamantan-1-yl)isocyanate in the presence of catalytic amounts of DBU afforded symmetrical 1,3-bis-((3-bromadamantan-1-yl)urea in 60% yield. are promising inhibitors of human soluble epoxide hydrolase hsEH.