Benzimidazole Heterocycle as a Privileged Scaffold in Antiviral Agents

Benzimidazole (benzimidazolone) template certainly deserves the title of privileged scaffold in antiviral drug research field because of the versatility and potential to yield derivatives with a wide range of antiviral activity, such as anti-HIV, anti-HCV, anti-HBV, anti-HCMV, anti-RSV and anti-rhino/enteroviruses activities, etc. These different biological properties of benzimidazole (benzimidazolone) derivatives have motivated new studies in searching for novel derivatives with improved activity and also other applications in pharmaceutical field. No systematic review is available in the literature on the benzimidazole (benzimidazolone) derivatives concerning the design of potent antiviral inhibitors. Owing to the importance of this heterocyclic system, the aim of this review is to present the main aspects of exploring antiviral properties, such as the structural modifications, the structure-activity relationship (SAR), making an effort to highlight the importance and therapeutic potentials of the benzimidazole (one) scaffold in the present antiviral agents.