Natural and Bioinspired Lipidic Alkynylcarbinols as\nLeishmanicidal, Antiplasmodial, Trypanocidal, Fungicidal, Antibacterial,\nand Antimycobacterial Agents

The\npresent review article recapitulates for the first time the\nantipathogenic biological data of a series of lipidic natural products\nand synthetic analogues thereof characterized by the presence in their\nstructure of an alkynylcarbinol unit. The cytotoxic properties of\nsuch natural and bioinspired compounds have been covered by several\nliterature overviews, but to date, no review article detailing their\nactivity against pathogens has been proposed. This article thus aims\nat providing a comprehensive overview of the field including early\nstudies from the 1970s and 1980s with a specific focus on results\npublished from the late 1990s until nowadays. Publications presenting\nthe data of almost 50 different natural products are reported. Detailed\nactivities encompass the fields of leishmanicidal, antiplasmodial,\ntrypanocidal, fungicidal, and mainly antibacterial and antimycobacterial\ncompounds. The few published studies aimed at exploring the structure–activity\nrelationship in these series are also described. Around 15 different\nsynthetic analogues of natural products, selected among the most active\nreported, are also presented. The rare data available regarding the\nantipathogenic mode of action of these products are recalled, and\nfinally, a comparative analysis of the available biological data is\nproposed with the aim of identifying the key structural determinants\nfor the bioactivity against pathogens of these unusual compounds.