Fluorine and Fluorinated Motifs in the Design and Application of Bioisosteres for Drug Design

The electronic properties and relatively small size of fluorine endow it with considerable versatility as a bioisostere and it has found application as a substitute for lone pairs of electrons, the hydrogen atom, and the methyl group while also acting as a functional mimetic of the carbonyl, carbinol, and nitrile moieties. In this context, fluorine substitution can influence the potency, conformation, metabolism, membrane permeability, and P-gp recognition of a molecule and temper inhibition of the hERG channel by basic amines. However, as a consequence of the unique properties of fluorine, it features prominently in the design of higher order structural metaphors that are more esoteric in their conception and which reflect a more sophisticated molecular construction that broadens biological mimesis. In this Perspective, applications of fluorine in the construction of bioisosteric elements designed to enhance the in vitro and in vivo properties of a molecule are summarized.