Pyrrole-2-carboxylic acid is small amphoteric polar metabolite produced by many Streptomyces species, often co-produced with its dimer, pyrocoll. Pyrrole-2-carboxylic acid is an important dereplication standard in discovery, displaying a distinctive UV spectrum and a broad range of biological activities, albeit weak. More recently, pyrrole-2-carboxylic has demonstrated antiparasitic activity against Trypanosomes by selective proline racemase inhibition and has potent antifungal activity against Phytophthora.
Pyrrole-2-carboxylic Acid is a reagent used in the synthesis of potent small molecule inhibitors of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) coronavirus. Also used in the synthesis of [2,3-c]pyridine-7-one scaffolds.