Recent advances in the antimicrobial potential of boron cluster compounds

Since their discovery in the mid-20th century, inorganic boron clusters such as carboranes, metallacarboranes, and dodecaborates have been investigated for a range of medicinal applications, most notably as boron delivery agents for boron neutron capture therapy. Increasingly, boron cluster-containing compounds have also been studied for their antimicrobial activity as scientists seek new ways to address the growing global threat of antimicrobial resistance. Boron cluster compounds have a number of properties that make them promising antimicrobial agents, including high lipophilicity and stability, low toxicity, resistance to enzymatic metabolism, unusual 'dihydrogen' bonding, as well as the ability to cross or disrupt cell membranes, or carry other molecules through them. In this review, we summarise and critically evaluate the antibacterial, antifungal, antiviral, and antimalarial boron cluster compounds reported to date, with a focus on the past five years of research. We highlight medicinal chemistry opportunities where boron clusters may deliver anti-infective value beyond that of traditional carbon-based scaffolds.