Development of Fibrates as Important Scaffolds in Medicinal Chemistry

Fibrates are a class of phenoxyisobutyric acid derivatives mainly used as anti-hyperlipidemic agents. The fibrate scaffold has undergone a variety of chemical modifications, providing a wide spectrum of biological activities. Within the last few years, the majority of new synthetic fibrate derivatives have demonstrated hypolipidemic activity through peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor α (PPARα) activation. However, some compounds containing the fibrate scaffold have shown different pharmacological properties, also independent of PPARα activation, such as anti-inflammatory, analgesic, antioxidant, and antiplatelet activities. The aim of this review is to highlight the structure-activity relationships (SAR) in evaluating the significance of fibrates in the field of medicinal chemistry.