The alarming increase in antimicrobial resistance has intensified the search for novel therapeutic agents capable of combating resistant microbial strains. Copper complexes have emerged as promising antimicrobial agents due to their intrinsic redox activity, ability to disrupt microbial membranes, and interactions with vital biomolecules such as DNA and proteins. This review critically evaluates the antimicrobial potential of copper complexes reported between 2018 and 2025, emphasizing their structural diversity, mechanisms of action, and biological performance against a wide range of bacterial and fungal pathogens. Key findings reveal that Schiff base copper complexes, amino acid derivatives, heterocyclic ligands, and mixed-ligand systems exhibit potent antimicrobial activities, often surpassing standard antibiotics. Mechanistically, copper complexes induce reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation, inhibit enzyme function, cause DNA cleavage, and compromise cell membrane integrity. Furthermore, structure–activity relationship (SAR) analyses indicate that ligand type, coordination geometry, and lipophilicity significantly influence antimicrobial efficacy. Overall, the reviewed studies support the development of copper-based compounds as viable candidates for antimicrobial drug development. This review also identifies current challenges and gaps in knowledge, such as limited in vivo studies and toxicity assessments, which must be addressed to advance these compounds toward clinical application.

Polyenes are a class of organic compounds well known for their potent antifungal properties. They are effective due to their ability to target and disrupt fungal cell membranes by binding to ergosterol and forming pores. Despite their effectiveness as antifungal drugs, polyenes have several limitations, such as high toxicity to the host cell and poor solubility in water. This has prompted ongoing research to develop safer and more efficient derivatives to overcome such limitations while enhancing their antifungal activity. In this review article, we present a thorough analysis of polyene derivatives, their structural modifications, and their influence on their therapeutic effects against various fungal strains. Key studies are discussed, illustrating how structural modifications have led to improved antifungal properties. By evaluating the latest advancements in the synthesis of polyene derivatives, we highlight that incorporating amide linkers at the carboxylic moiety of polyene molecules notably improves their antifungal properties, as evidenced by derivatives 4, 5, 6G, and 18. This review can help in the design and development of novel polyene-based compounds with potent antifungal activities.

Recently, the numerical simulation of solar cells has attracted tantamount scientific attention in the photovoltaic community because it saves on research time and resources before the actual fabrication of the devices in the laboratories. Despite significant advancements in the fabrication of quantum dot-sensitized solar cells (QDSSCs), the power conversion efficiency (PCE) is still low when compared to other solar cells such as perovskite. This efficiency gap poses a substantial challenge in harnessing the full potential of QDSSCs for widespread adoption in renewable energy applications. Enhancing the efficiency of QDSSCs is imperative for their commercial viability and widespread deployment. In this work, SCAPS-1D was used in the simulation of QDSSCs. The solar cell with a general configuration of FTO/TiO₂/PbS/HTL/Au was investigated. In the device, PbS quantum dots were inserted as the absorber layer, TiO₂ as the electron transport layer (ETL), gold as the back contact, and the following inorganic materials, i.e., copper (I) iodide (CuI), copper (I) oxide (Cu₂O), cadmium zinc telluride selenide (CZTSe), copper iron tin sulfide (CFTS), and copper zinc tin sulfide selenide (CZTSSe) were tested as HTL materials, and FTO acted as the conductive substrate. The best HTL material (CZTSSe) exhibited a PCE of 22.61%, with a fill factor (FF) of 84.67%, an open circuit voltage (V_oc) of 0.753 V, and a current density (J_sc) of 35.48 mA cm⁻². This study contributes to the field by employing SCAPS-1D simulations to optimize QDSSCs, exploring novel inorganic HTL materials for these solar cells and identifying CZTSSe as a promising low-cost HTL that significantly enhances both the performance and commercial viability of QDSSCs.

The shortage of effective chemotherapeutic agents poses a significant challenge to the global public health system. Cancer is among the leading diseases affecting the human population worldwide. Issues such as drug resistance, toxicity, lack of specificity, poor bioavailability and water solubility, and severe side effects reduce the effectiveness of many existing anticancer drugs. As a result, there is growing interest in discovering a new generation of therapeutic agents to overcome these limitations. Phenolic acids, including ferulic and caffeic acids, are cinnamic acid derivatives with numerous biological effects, including anti-inflammatory, antibacterial, antifungal, antioxidant, antiviral, cytotoxic, and antiproliferative effects. In recent years, drug repurposing and hybridization strategies have emerged as attractive approaches in medicinal chemistry because they may reduce both the cost and time associated with conventional drug discovery. As a result, several researchers have combined ferulic acid and caffeic acid scaffolds with different pharmacophores to generate hybrid compounds with enhanced anticancer potential. This review summarizes recent in vitro and in silico studies published between 2022 and 2025 on ferulic and caffeic acid hybrid compounds that exhibit cytotoxic and antiproliferative effects. Furthermore, the review discusses structure–activity relationship trends, synthetic approaches, and structural modifications associated with improved biological activity. Collectively, the findings highlight the significant potential of ferulic acid and caffeic acid scaffolds in the development of multifunctional anticancer agents.

The increasing global demand for renewable energy has intensified the search for high-efficiency and cost-effective solar cell technologies. Quantum dot-sensitized solar cells (QDSSCs) have emerged as promising candidates due to their tunable optoelectronic properties and enhanced light absorption. In this study, SnS quantum dots were synthesized from dithiocarbamate complexes using different ligands, namely m-toluidine (SnS1), aniline (SnS2), and p-toluidine (SnS3), to investigate the influence of precursor chemistry on material properties and device performance. Structural analysis confirmed the formation of an orthorhombic phase for all samples, while morphological studies revealed well-dispersed nanocrystals for SnS1 (5.93 nm), increased aggregation for SnS2 (8.57 nm), and partially fused domains with an intermediate size for SnS3 (6.67 nm). Optical measurements showed bandgap energies of 2.8, 2.2, and 2.7 eV for SnS1, SnS2, and SnS3, respectively, with SnS3 exhibiting reduced charge-recombination behaviour. Photovoltaic devices fabricated using these materials yielded power conversion efficiencies of 3.40, 2.03, and 7.63% for SnS1, SnS2, and SnS3, respectively, with no significant improvement observed for bifacial configurations. The superior performance of SnS3 is attributed to an optimal balance between light absorption, morphology, and charge transport properties, highlighting the critical role of precursor ligand selection in tuning quantum dot characteristics for improved QDSSC performance.

Antimicrobial resistance has significantly compromised the therapeutic efficacy of many antibiotics, highlighting the need for new agents capable of overcoming bacterial resistance. The discovery of antibiotics in the early 20th century contributed significantly to transforming modern medicine and saved countless lives. However, the alarming increase in antibiotic resistance now threatens these achievements. The misuse and overuse of antibiotics have driven the continuous evolution and adaptation of microorganisms, contributing to this growing global health challenge. Azithromycin (AZM), a widely used macrolide antibiotic with favorable pharmacokinetic properties, is increasingly affected by resistance mechanisms. A number of researchers have therefore designed and developed AZM derivatives with promising antibacterial properties. This review summarizes advances in the structural modification of AZM, focusing on side-chain modification, heterocyclic substitution, molecular hybridization, and their associated structure–activity relationships. Selected derivatives demonstrated enhanced activity against resistant bacterial pathogens compared with AZM, although activity varies according to substituent position, linker structure, and overall molecular properties. Nevertheless, the activity of many AZM derivatives against Gram-negative organisms remains limited, with restricted outer-membrane permeability and inadequate intracellular accumulation representing important barriers to achieving effective antibacterial activity. Overall, the structural modification of AZM represents a promising strategy for developing potential antibacterial agents, but further pharmacological and in vivo studies are required to establish their therapeutic potential.