Recent Progress of Sulfonamide-Indole/Carbazole Hybrids with the Anticancer Potential (A Review)

Cancer, a complex group of heterogeneous diseases characterized by the uncontrolled growth and the capability to invade nearby tissues and organs, represents a severe threat to public health worldwide. Over 100 chemotherapeutics have been approved for clinical cancer therapy, but the goal of eradicating cancer remains elusive mainly due to the continuous emergency of drug resistance, necessitating the development of novel anticancer chemotherapeutics. Indoles and carbazoles, contain a benzo[b]pyrrole moiety, are ubiquitous in nature and possess remarkable structural, and anticancer mechanistic diversity, whereas sulfonamides demonstrated potent anticancer efficacy through multiple modes of action, inclusive of apoptosis induction, autophagy regulation, and cell cycle disruption. Accordingly, indole/carbazole and sulfonamide constitute valuable anticancer pharmacophores, and rational hybridization of sulfonamide and indole/carbazole holds a significant functionality in discovery of new anticancer agents. In this review, we summed up the recent advances of sulfonamide-indole/carbazole hybrids with anticancer potential and elucidated the structure-activity relationships as well as mechanisms of action, covering articles published from 2020 onwards, to pave the way for developing more effective anticancer candidates.