A review of semicarbazone-derived metal complexes for application in biomedicine and related fields

Semicarbazones are a type of chemical compound which are formed by the condensation reaction of imines with aldehydes or ketones. These compounds are highly adaptable and flexible in their applications. Transition metal complexes containing imine ligands, such as Zn, Cu and Cd. have been proven to be effective predecessors for the production of metal or metal chalcogenide nanoparticles. In recent times, scientists have been closely studying semicarbazones and their metal complexes due to their potential use in various fields such as pharmacology, nanotechnology, and biological composite oxidation. These versatile compounds have shown promising results in areas such as antifungal, antiviral, antituberculosis, anticancer, antimalarial, anti-HIV, and catalytic applications. The researchers have also analyzed the spectroscopic data such as IR and NMR of these complexes. Mononuclear, binuclear and also polynuclear complexes of semicarbazones are also discussed. This review covers a variety of semicarbazone complexes grouped according to their characteristics. However, there is potential for the synthesis of new and unique semicarbazone complexes that could have significant activity in the fields of biology and pharmaceuticals. These future developments are expected to generate significant interest. The synthetic root of some of these derivatives and complexes is evaluated as for biological activities in line with this biological potential in order to arrange the various biological activities of certain synthesized semicarbazone derivatives with transition metals.