为了提高药物发现的成功率，一种实用的策略是开始分子杂交。单个单元中存在两个或更多个药效团导致药理学效力大于每个单独部分效力的总和。杂环化合物在自然界中分布非常广泛，对生命活动至关重要。苯并咪唑和恶二唑是药物化学中的特殊结构，由于其广泛的生物学特性而广泛用于药物发现和开发。苯并咪唑-恶二唑嵌合分子可以通过分子杂交方法改善各个支架的类药特性（如药代动力学和药效学）。苯并咪唑和恶二唑核可以稠合或使用任一官能团/键合并。在过去的几十年里，药物发现科学家预测这些部分可以相互连接以产生新型或修饰的杂化化合物。苯并咪唑和恶二唑混合物被认为是最有效的抗癌、抗菌、抗炎、抗氧化剂、抗惊厥、抗抑郁、抗高血压和抗结核药物。在此背景下，本综述描述了苯并咪唑-恶二唑（1,3,4 和 1,2,4）杂化物的生物学特性、它们可能的结构-活性关系以及所提出的作用机制研究。这篇综述文章旨在激发新的想法，以寻求合理设计活性更强、毒性更低的苯并咪唑-恶二唑混合前瞻性治疗候选药物，以及更有效的诊断剂和病理探针。© 2024 John Wiley

To increase the success rate of drug discovery, one practical strategy is to begin molecular hybridisation. The presence of two or more pharmacophores in a single unit leads to a pharmacological potency greater than the sum of each individual moiety's potency. Heterocyclic compounds are very widely distributed in nature and are essential for life activities. Benzimidazole and oxadiazole are privileged structures in medicinal chemistry and are widely used in drug discovery and development due to their vast biological properties. The drug-like properties (like pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics) of the individual scaffolds can be improved by benzimidazole-oxadiazole chimeric molecules via a molecular hybridisation approach. Benzimidazole and oxadiazole cores can either be fused or incorporated using either functional groups/bonds. Over the last few decades, drug discovery scientists have predicted that these moieties could be interconnected to yield a novel or modified hybrid compound. Benzimidazole and oxadiazole hybrids were identified as the most potent anticancer, antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, anticonvulsant, antidepressant, antihypertensive and antitubercular agents. In this context, the present review describes the biological properties of benzimidazole-oxadiazole (1,3,4 and 1,2,4) hybrids, their possible structure-activity relationship and the mechanism of action studies presented. This review article is intended to stimulate fresh ideas in the search for rational designs of more active and less toxic benzimidazole-oxadiazole hybrid prospective therapeutic candidates, as well as more effective diagnostic agents and pathologic probes.© 2024 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.