Monoamine oxidase inhibitors: Diverse and surprising chemistry with expanding pharmacological potential

Abstract

The prominence of monoamine oxidases (MAO's) in pharmacology arose from initial findings in the 1960s that arylalkyl hydrazines, originally used to treat tuberculosis patients, exhibited a mood-elevating response by the irreversible inhibition of MAO. This finding sparked considerable investigations into various MAO inhibitors by both academic and pharmaceutical laboratories to develop drugs that could be used as anti-depressants and active research in this field continues. This chapter provides an account of the contribution given by structural studies in this field. © 2013 Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht.