Oxirane is a three-membered ring compound consisting of one oxygen atom and two carbon atoms. Oxirane is present in natural products such as cryptocin, which has anticancer properties, and azidomycin, trienone, and epoxidomycin, which have shown activity against drug-resistant leukemias and AIDS-related lymphomas. Other oxirane containing bioactive molecules have anti-inflammatory, immunosuppressive, and antitumor activities. Oxiranes are a strained ring susceptible to various nucleophilic, ring-opening or rearrangement reactions, so they are considered to be one of the most important intermediates in organic synthesis.
The use of azepane as a scaffold for drug discovery remains of interest. The azepane linker is the key to efficient activity. A number of seven-membered ring derivatives have been prepared or investigated for their potential or actual pharmacological properties. Examples include azaalkane derivatives as PKB (protein kinase B) inhibitors.