Organometallic chemistry, biology and medicine: ruthenium arene anticancer complexes

Self-assembly of Cationic, Hetero- or Homo-nuclear Ru(II) Macrocyclic Rectangles and their Photophysical, Electrochemical and Biological Studies

A series of supramolecular rectangles, including two mixed-metal Ru/Pt complexes, have been formed by the coordination-driven self-assembly of a range of arene-Ru "molecular clip" acceptors (1a-1d) with rigid dipyridyl-based ligands (2a-2d) over the course of 10 hours in solution. The isolated products were characterized by multinuclear NMR ((1)H and (13)C or (31)P), HR-ESI-MS and an X-ray diffraction study to support the ascribed two-component rectangular structures. The rectangles were further characterized by UV-Vis and fluorescence studies. The redox behaviors of rectangles 3ca and 3da were also determined using cyclic voltammetry. Additionally, the antitumor activities of the suite of rectangles were determined against various human cancer cell lines and significant activity was shown by complexes 3ca, 3da, 3cb, 3cc and 3cd, with IC(50) values as low as 2.65 μM.

Structural analysis of organometallic compounds with soft ionization mass spectrometry

The analysis of organometallic compounds with mass spectrometry has some special features in comparison with organic and bioorganic compounds. The first step is the choice of a suitable ionization technique, where the electrospray ionization is certainly the best possibility for most classes of organometallic compounds and metal complexes. Some ionization mechanisms of organometallic compounds are comparable to organic molecules, such as protonation/deprotonation, and adduct formation with sodium or potassium ions; however, in many cases, different mechanisms and their combinations complicate the spectra interpretation. Organometallics frequently undergo various types of adduct and polymerization reactions that result in significantly higher masses observed in the spectra in comparison to molecular weights of studied compounds. Metal elements typically have more natural isotopes than common organic elements, which cause characteristic wide distributions of isotopic peaks; for example, tin has ten natural isotopes. The isotopic pattern can be used for the identification of the type and number of metal elements in particular ions. The ionization and fragmentation behavior also depend on the type of metal atom; therefore, our discussion of mass spectra interpretation is divided according to the different type of organometallic compounds. Among various types of mass spectrometers available on the market, trap-based analyzers (linear or spherical ion-traps, Orbitrap) are suitable to study complex fragmentation pathways of organometallic ions and their adducts, whereas high-resolution and high-mass accuracy analyzers (time-of-flight-based analyzers, or Fourier transform-based analyzers-Orbitrap or ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometers) provide accurate masses applicable for the determination of the elemental composition of individual ions.

Synthesis, spectroscopic, crystal structure and DNA binding of Ru(II) complexes with 2-hydroxy-benzoic acid [1-(4-hydroxy-6-methyl-2-oxo-2H-pyran-3-yl)-ethylidene]-hydrazide

Reactions of 2-hydroxy-benzoic acid [1-(4-hydroxy-6-methyl-2-oxo-2H-pyran-3-yl)-ethylidene]-hydrazide (H(2)L) with [RuHCl(CO)(EPh(3))(3)] (E = P or As) were carried out and the new complexes obtained were characterized by elemental analysis, electronic, IR, (1)H NMR and (13)C NMR spectroscopic techniques and single crystal X-ray diffraction studies. Complex (1) crystallizes in the monoclinic space group P2(1)/c with unit cell dimensions a=18.6236(17) Å, b=12.8627(12) Å, c=21.683(2) Å, α=90.00, β=114.626(2), γ=90.00 V=4721.8(8) Å, Z=4. The crystal structure of the complex shows Ru(II) atom is six-coordinated, forming a slightly distorted octahedral geometry with two P atoms in axial positions, and three chelating donor atoms of the tridentate Schiff base ligand and one carbonyl group located in the equatorial plane. The molecular structure is stabilized by intramolecular O-H···N interactions. No intermolecular hydrogen bond was observed. The intramolecular hydrogen bond exists between the oxygen atom from salicylic acid moiety and nitrogen from the same moiety. A variety of solution studies were carried out for the determination of DNA binding mode of the complexes. The results suggest that both complexes bind to Herring sperm DNA via non intercalative mode.

Anticancer activity of metal complexes: involvement of redox processes

Cells require tight regulation of the intracellular redox balance and consequently of reactive oxygen species for proper redox signaling and maintenance of metal (e.g., of iron and copper) homeostasis. In several diseases, including cancer, this balance is disturbed. Therefore, anticancer drugs targeting the redox systems, for example, glutathione and thioredoxin, have entered focus of interest. Anticancer metal complexes (platinum, gold, arsenic, ruthenium, rhodium, copper, vanadium, cobalt, manganese, gadolinium, and molybdenum) have been shown to strongly interact with or even disturb cellular redox homeostasis. In this context, especially the hypothesis of "activation by reduction" as well as the "hard and soft acids and bases" theory with respect to coordination of metal ions to cellular ligands represent important concepts to understand the molecular modes of action of anticancer metal drugs. The aim of this review is to highlight specific interactions of metal-based anticancer drugs with the cellular redox homeostasis and to explain this behavior by considering chemical properties of the respective anticancer metal complexes currently either in (pre)clinical development or in daily clinical routine in oncology.

Library of second-generation cycloruthenated compounds and evaluation of their biological properties as potential anticancer drugs: passing the nanomolar barrier

A library of 32 organoruthenium compounds has been synthesised. Known and novel C-N cyclometalated compounds as well as N-C-N and N-N-C pincer derivatives of this metal have been used in this purpose. Most of the compounds have been tested for their in vitro antitumoral behaviours, good to excellent activities have thus been found. Several of the newly synthesized compounds pass the symbolic barrier of the nanomolar range for their IC(50) indicating a critical improvement. The level of activity is tentatively correlated to physicochemical properties of the compounds such as their Ru(III/II) redox potential and their lipophilicity (log P).

Organometallic cis-Dichlorido Ruthenium(II) Ammine Complexes

Bifunctional neutral half-sandwich RuII complexes of the type [(η6-arene)Ru(NH3)Cl2] where arene is p-cym (1) or bip (2) were synthesised by the reaction of N,N-dimethylbenzylamine (dmba), NH4PF6 and the corresponding RuII arene dimer, and were fully characterised. X-ray crystallographic studies of [(η6-p-cym)Ru(NH3)Cl2]·{(dmba-H)(PF6)} (1a) and [(η6-bip)Ru(NH3)Cl2] (2) show extensive H-bond interactions in the solid state, mainly involving the NH3 and the Cl ligands, as well as weak aromatic stacking interactions. The half-lives for the sequential hydrolysis of 1 and 2 determined by UV/Vis spectroscopy at 310 K ranged from a few minutes for the first aquation to ca. 45 min for the second aquation; the diaqua adducts were the predominant species at equilibrium. Arene loss during the aquation of complex 2 was observed. Upon hydrolysis, both complexes readily formed mono- and di-9-ethylguanine (9-EtG) adducts in aqueous solution at 310 K. The reaction reached equilibrium after ca. 1.8 h in the case of complex 1 and was slower but more complete for complex 2 (before the onset of arene loss at ca. 2.7 h). Complexes 1 and 2 were not cytotoxic towards A2780 human ovarian cancer cells up to the maximum concentration tested (100 μM).

A QM/MM study of the binding of RAPTA ligands to cathepsin B

We have carried out quantum mechanical (QM) and QM/MM (combined QM and molecular mechanics) calculations, as well as molecular dynamics (MD) simulations to study the binding of a series of six RAPTA (Ru(II)-arene-1,3,5-triaza-7-phosphatricyclo-[3.3.1.1] decane) complexes with different arene substituents to cathepsin B. The recently developed QM/MM-PBSA approach (QM/MM combined with Poisson-Boltzmann solvent-accessible surface area solvation) has been used to estimate binding affinities. The QM calculations reproduce the antitumour activities of the complexes with a correlation coefficient (r (2)) of 0.35-0.86 after a conformational search. The QM/MM-PBSA method gave a better correlation (r (2) = 0.59) when the protein was fixed to the crystal structure, but more reasonable ligand structures and absolute binding energies were obtained if the protein was allowed to relax, indicating that the ligands are strained when the protein is kept fixed. In addition, the best correlation (r (2) = 0.80) was obtained when only the QM energies were used, which suggests that the MM and continuum solvation energies are not accurate enough to predict the binding of a charged metal complex to a charged protein. Taking into account the protein flexibility by means of MD simulations slightly improves the correlation (r (2) = 0.91), but the absolute energies are still too large and the results are sensitive to the details in the calculations, illustrating that it is hard to obtain stable predictions when full flexible protein is included in the calculations.

Enhancements in travelling wave ion mobility resolution

The use of ion mobility separation to determine the collision cross-section of a gas-phase ion can provide valuable structural information. The introduction of travelling-wave ion mobility within a quadrupole/time-of-flight mass spectrometer has afforded routine collision cross-section measurements to be performed on a range of ionic species differing in gas-phase size/structure and molecular weight at physiologically relevant concentrations. Herein we discuss the technical advances in the second-generation travelling-wave ion mobility separator, which result in up to a four-fold increase in mobility resolution. This improvement is demonstrated using two reverse peptides (mw 490 Da), small ruthenium-containing anticancer drugs (mw 427 Da), a cisplatin-modified protein (mw 8776 Da) and the noncovalent tetradecameric chaperone complex GroEL (mw 802 kDa). What is also shown are that the collision cross-sections determined using the second-generation mobility separator correlate well with the previous generation and theoretically derived values.

Metal complexes as DNA intercalators

DNA has a strong affinity for many heterocyclic aromatic dyes, such as acridine and its derivatives. Lerman in 1961 first proposed intercalation as the source of this affinity, and this mode of DNA binding has since attracted considerable research scrutiny. Organic intercalators can inhibit nucleic acid synthesis in vivo, and they are now common anticancer drugs in clinical therapy. The covalent attachment of organic intercalators to transition metal coordination complexes, yielding metallointercalators, can lead to novel DNA interactions that influence biological activity. Metal complexes with σ-bonded aromatic side arms can act as dual-function complexes: they bind to DNA both by metal coordination and through intercalation of the attached aromatic ligand. These aromatic side arms introduce new modes of DNA binding, involving mutual interactions of functional groups held in close proximity. The biological activity of both cis- and trans-diamine Pt(II) complexes is dramatically enhanced by the addition of σ-bonded intercalators. We have explored a new class of organometallic "piano-stool" Ru(II) and Os(II) arene anticancer complexes of the type [(η(6)-arene)Ru/Os(XY)Cl](+). Here XY is, for example, ethylenediamine (en), and the arene ligand can take many forms, including tetrahydroanthracene, biphenyl, or p-cymene. Arene-nucleobase stacking interactions can have a significant influence on both the kinetics and thermodynamics of DNA binding. In particular, the cytotoxic activity, conformational distortions, recognition by DNA-binding proteins, and repair mechanisms are dependent on the arene. A major difficulty in developing anticancer drugs is cross-resistance, a phenomenon whereby a cell that is resistant to one drug is also resistant to another drug in the same class. These new complexes are non-cross-resistant with cisplatin towards cancer cells: they constitute a new class of anticancer agents, with a mechanism of action that differs from the anticancer drug cisplatin and its analogs. The Ru-arene complexes with dual functions are more potent towards cancer cells than their nonintercalating analogs. In this Account, we focus on recent studies of dual-function organometallic Ru(II)- and Os(II)-arene complexes and the methods used to detect arene-DNA intercalation. We relate these interactions to the mechanism of anticancer activity and to structure-activity relationships. The interactions between these complexes and DNA show close similarities to those of covalent polycyclic aromatic carcinogens, especially to N7-alkylating intercalation compounds. However, Ru-arene complexes exhibit some new features. Classical intercalation and base extrusion next to the metallated base is observed for {(η(6)-biphenyl)Ru(ethylenediamine)}(2+) adducts of a 14-mer duplex, while penetrating arene intercalation occurs for adducts of the nonaromatic bulky intercalator {(η(6)-tetrahydroanthracene)Ru(ethylenediamine)}(2+) with a 6-mer duplex. The introduction of dual-function Ru-arene complexes introduces new mechanisms of antitumor activity, novel mechanisms for attack on DNA, and new concepts for developing structure- activity relationships. We hope this discussion will stimulate thoughtful and focused research on the design of anticancer chemotherapeutic agents using these unique approaches.

Hexanuclear self-assembled arene-ruthenium nano-prismatic cages: potential anticancer agents

Two novel nano-cage compounds, 8 and 9, were prepared by self-assembly of the ruthenium complexes 4 and 5, and the tripodal donor 1. The cytotoxicity of 8 was found to be considerably stronger than that of cisplatin. The complex 8 inhibited tumor cell proliferation by interfering into regulatory pathways of the cell cycle via apoptosis.

DNA binding, prominent DNA cleavage and efficient anticancer activities of tris(diimine)iron(II) complexes

The complexes rac-[Fe(diimine)(3)](ClO(4))(2)1-4, where diimine = 2,2'-bipyridine (bpy) 1, 1,10-phenanthroline (phen) 2, 5,6-dimethyl-1,10-phenanthroline (5,6-dmp) 3 and dipyrido[3,2-d:2',3'-f]quinoxaline (dpq) 4, have been isolated, characterized and their interaction with calf thymus DNA studied by using a host of physical methods. The X-ray crystal structure of rac-[Fe(5,6-dmp)(3)](ClO(4))(2)3 has been determined and the packing diagram shows the presence of two enantiomeric forms of the complex cations in the same unit cell. The structures of 1-4 in solution have also been studied using UV-Visible, Cyclic Voltammetry and ESI-MS data and all data available suggests that they retain their solid state structures even in solution. The absorption spectral titrations of the iron(ii) complexes with CT DNA reveal that the DNA binding affinities of the complexes vary in the order, 4 (K(b): 9.0 × 10(3)) > 2 (6.8 × 10(3)) > 3 (4. 8 × 10(3)) > 1 (2.9 × 10(3) M(-1)). The DNA interaction of dpq complex (4) involves partial insertion of the extended phen ring in between the DNA base pairs, which is deeper than that of phen (2). The 5,6-dmp (3) complex is involved in groove binding in the major groove of DNA. The lower DNA binding affinity of 1 is due to electrostatic interaction of the cationic complexes with exterior phosphates of DNA. The EthBr displacement assay and DNA viscosity study support these DNA binding modes and the above trend in DNA binding affinities. The complexes of 1 and 2 show induced CD (ICD) upon interaction with CT DNA while 3 and 4 bound to DNA exhibit inversion in the positive band with the helicity band showing very small changes, which implies that 3 and 4 bind enantiopreferentially to DNA. The DNA cleavage abilities of 1-4 have been observed at 10 μM concentration of complexes in the presence of 100 μM H(2)O(2) and the DNA cleavage efficiency (> 90%) follows the order 3 > 1 > 2 > 4. The anticancer activity of 1-4 against human breast cancer cell line (MCF-7) has also been studied. The IC(50) values of the complexes at different incubation time intervals of 24 and 48 h follow the order, 3 (0.8, 0.6) < 4 (20.0, 17.0) < 2 (28.0, 22.0) < 1 (32.0, 29.0 μM). Interestingly, 3 exhibits anticancer activity more potent than 1, 2 and 4 and cisplatin for both 24 and 48 h. It induces cell death both through apoptosis and necrosis mechanisms, as revealed by morphological assessment data obtained by using AO/EB and Hoechst 33258 fluorescence staining methods.

Novel metals and metal complexes as platforms for cancer therapy

Metals are essential cellular components selected by nature to function in several indispensable biochemical processes for living organisms. Metals are endowed with unique characteristics that include redox activity, variable coordination modes, and reactivity towards organic substrates. Due to their reactivity, metals are tightly regulated under normal conditions and aberrant metal ion concentrations are associated with various pathological disorders, including cancer. For these reasons, coordination complexes, either as drugs or prodrugs, become very attractive probes as potential anticancer agents. The use of metals and their salts for medicinal purposes, from iatrochemistry to modern day, has been present throughout human history. The discovery of cisplatin, cis-[Pt(II) (NH(3))(2)Cl(2)], was a defining moment which triggered the interest in platinum(II)- and other metal-containing complexes as potential novel anticancer drugs. Other interests in this field address concerns for uptake, toxicity, and resistance to metallodrugs. This review article highlights selected metals that have gained considerable interest in both the development and the treatment of cancer. For example, copper is enriched in various human cancer tissues and is a co-factor essential for tumor angiogenesis processes. However the use of copper-binding ligands to target tumor copper could provide a novel strategy for cancer selective treatment. The use of nonessential metals as probes to target molecular pathways as anticancer agents is also emphasized. Finally, based on the interface between molecular biology and bioinorganic chemistry the design of coordination complexes for cancer treatment is reviewed and design strategies and mechanisms of action are discussed.

Artificial metalloenzymes based on the biotin-avidin technology: enantioselective catalysis and beyond

Artificial metalloenzymes are created by incorporating an organometallic catalyst within a host protein. The resulting hybrid can thus provide access to the best features of two distinct, and often complementary, systems: homogeneous and enzymatic catalysts. The coenzyme may be positioned with covalent, dative, or supramolecular anchoring strategies. Although initial reports date to the late 1970s, artificial metalloenzymes for enantioselective catalysis have gained significant momentum only in the past decade, with the aim of complementing homogeneous, enzymatic, heterogeneous, and organic catalysts. Inspired by a visionary report by Wilson and Whitesides in 1978, we have exploited the potential of biotin-avidin technology in creating artificial metalloenzymes. Owing to the remarkable affinity of biotin for either avidin or streptavidin, covalent linking of a biotin anchor to a catalyst precursor ensures that, upon stoichiometric addition of (strept)avidin, the metal moiety is quantitatively incorporated within the host protein. In this Account, we review our progress in preparing and optimizing these artificial metalloenzymes, beginning with catalytic hydrogenation as a model and expanding from there. These artificial metalloenzymes can be optimized by both chemical (variation of the biotin-spacer-ligand moiety) and genetic (mutation of avidin or streptavidin) means. Such chemogenetic optimization schemes were applied to various enantioselective transformations. The reactions implemented thus far include the following: (i) The rhodium-diphosphine catalyzed hydrogenation of N-protected dehydroaminoacids (ee up to 95%); (ii) the palladium-diphosphine catalyzed allylic alkylation of 1,3-diphenylallylacetate (ee up to 95%); (iii) the ruthenium pianostool-catalyzed transfer hydrogenation of prochiral ketones (ee up to 97% for aryl-alkyl ketones and ee up to 90% for dialkyl ketones); (iv) the vanadyl-catalyzed oxidation of prochiral sulfides (ee up to 93%). A number of noteworthy features are reminiscent of homogeneous catalysis, including straightforward access to both enantiomers of the product, the broad substrate scope, organic solvent tolerance, and an accessible range of reactions that are typical of homogeneous catalysts. Enzyme-like features include access to genetic optimization, an aqueous medium as the preferred solvent, Michaelis-Menten behavior, and single-substrate derivatization. The X-ray characterization of artificial metalloenzymes provides fascinating insight into possible enantioselection mechanisms involving a well-defined second coordination sphere environment. Thus, such artificial metalloenzymes combine attractive features of both homogeneous and enzymatic kingdoms. In the spirit of surface borrowing, that is, modulating ligand affinity by harnessing existing protein surfaces, this strategy can be extended to selectively binding streptavidin-incorporated biotinylated ruthenium pianostool complexes to telomeric DNA. This application paves the way for chemical biology applications of artificial metalloenzymes.

Unusual eta2-allene osmacycle with apoptotic properties

Screening of a library of structurally unusual osmacyclic complexes for their antiproliferate properties in HeLa cells led to the discovery of a highly cytotoxic eta2-allene osmacycle. In this remarkably stable complex, osmium constitutes part of a metallacycle through the formation of a sigma-bond to a carbon in combination with coordination to an allene moiety. The osmacycle strongly induces apoptosis in Burkitt-like lymphoma cells at submicromolar concentrations. The reduction of the mitochondrial membrane potential, the induction of DNA fragmentation, and the activation of caspases-9 and -3 reveal that programmed cell death occurs through the intrinsic mitochondrial pathway. From the lipophilic and cationic nature of the osmacycle, in addition to a low oxidation potential (E1/2=+0.27 V vs. Fc/Fc+, Fc=ferrocene) it is proposed that mitochondria are the cellular target where oxidative decomposition initiates apoptosis.

Organometallic osmium arene complexes with potent cancer cell cytotoxicity

Iodido osmium(II) complexes [Os(η(6)-arene)(XY)I](+) (XY = p-hydroxy or p-dimethylaminophenylazopyridine, arene = p-cymene or biphenyl) are potently cytotoxic at nanomolar concentrations toward a panel of human cancer cell lines; e.g., IC(50) = 140 nM for [Os(η(6)-bip)(azpy-NMe(2))I](+) toward A2780 ovarian cancer cells. They exhibit low toxicity and negligible deleterious effects in a colon cancer xenograft model, giving rise to the possibility of a broad therapeutic window. The most active complexes are stable and inert toward aquation. Their cytotoxic activity appears to involve redox mechanisms.