Drugs derived from thiazole and imidazole or with nitrogen-carbon-sulphur or tertiary amino groups. Prediction of secondary antithyroid activity by UV/visible spectroscopy.

The chemical structure of various drugs suggests their potential interference with thyroid metabolism by complexing molecular iodine in the thyroid gland. Spectroscopic analysis shows that such compounds form charge-transfer complexes with iodine in a 1:1 stoichiometry. The values of formation constant Kc indicate strong donor-acceptor interactions. Biochemical and histological studies carried out on the rat demonstrated that a correlation exists between the Kc values and the antithyroid activity. A mechanism of action of these molecules on thyroid function is proposed. The potential antithyroid activity of such compounds can therefore be predicted from the Kc values.