A computational approach to tuning the photochemistry of platinum(IV) anticancer agents

Research progress of azido-containing Pt(IV) antitumor compounds

Cancer is a long-known incurable disease, and the medical use of cisplatin has been a significant discovery. However, the side-effects of cisplatin necessitate the development of new and improved drug. Therefore, in this study, we focused on the photoactivatable Pt(IV) compounds Pt[(X₁)(X₂)(Y₁)(Y₂)(N₃)₂], which have a completely novel mechanism of action. Pt(IV) can efficiently overcome the side-effects of cisplatin and other drugs. Here, we have demonstrated, summarized and discussed the effects and mechanism of these compounds. Compared to the relevant articles in the literature, we have provided a more detailed introduction and a made comprehensive classification of these compounds. We believe that our results can effectively provide a reference for the development of these drugs.

Platinum(IV)-azido monocarboxylato complexes are photocytotoxic under irradiation with visible light

Complexes trans,trans,trans-[Pt(N3)2(OH)(OCOR)(py)2] where py = pyridine and where OCOR = succinate (1); 4-oxo-4-propoxybutanoate (2) and N-methylisatoate (3) have been synthesized by derivation of trans,trans,trans-[Pt(OH)2(N3)2(py)2] (4) and characterised by NMR and EPR spectroscopy, ESI-MS and X-ray crystallography. Irradiation of 1-3 with green (517 nm) light initiated photoreduction to Pt(ii) and release of the axial ligands at a 3-fold faster rate than for 4. TD-DFT calculations showed dissociative transitions at longer wavelengths for 1 compared to 4. Complexes 1 and 2 showed greater photocytotoxicity than 4 when irradiated with 420 nm light (A2780 cell line IC50 values: 2.7 and 3.7 μM) and complex 2 was particularly active towards the cisplatin-resistant cell line A2780cis (IC50 3.7 μM). Unlike 4, complexes 1-3 were phototoxic under green light irradiation (517 nm), with minimal toxicity in the dark. A pKa(H2O) of 5.13 for the free carboxylate group was determined for 1, corresponding to an overall negative charge during biological experiments, which crucially, did not appear to impede cellular accumulation and photocytotoxicity.

The Role of Triplet States in the Photodissociation of a Platinum Azide Complex by a Density Matrix Renormalization Group Method

Platinum azide complexes are appealing anticancer photochemotherapy drug candidates because they release cytotoxic azide radicals upon light irradiation. Here we present a density matrix renormalization group self-consistent field (DMRG-SCF) study of the azide photodissociation mechanism of trans,trans,trans-[Pt(N₃)₂(OH)₂(NH₃)₂], including spin-orbit coupling. We find a complex interplay of singlet and triplet electronic excited states that falls into three different dissociation channels at well-separated energies. These channels can be accessed either via direct excitation into barrierless dissociative states or via intermediate doorway states from which the system undergoes non-radiative internal conversion and intersystem crossing. The high density of states, particularly of spin-mixed states, is key to aid non-radiative population transfer and enhance photodissociation along the lowest electronic excited states.

A visible-light photoactivatable di-nuclear PtIV triazolato azido complex

A novel PtIV triazolato azido complex [3]-[N1,N3] has been synthesised via a strain-promoted double-click reaction (SPDC) between a PtIV azido complex (1) and the Sondheimer diyne (2). Photoactivation of [3]-[N1,N3] with visible light (452 nm) in the presence of 5'-guanosine monophosphate (5'-GMP) produced both PtIV and PtII 5'-GMP species; EPR spectroscopy confirmed the production of both azidyl and hydroxyl radicals. Spin-trapping of photogenerated radicals - particularly hydroxyl radicals - was significantly reduced in the presence of 5'-GMP.

Diazido platinum(iv) complexes for photoactivated anticancer chemotherapy

Diazido Pt(iv) complexes with a general formula [Pt(N₃)₂(L)(L′)(OR)(OR′)] are a new generation of anticancer prodrugs designed for use in photoactivated chemotherapy.

Photolabile coumarins with improved efficiency through azetidinyl substitution

The efficiency of photoactivatable coumarins in water has been enhanced by substitution with azetidine.

Azetidinyl substituents have been recently used to improve the fluorescence quantum yield of several classes of fluorophores. Herein, we demonstrate that other useful photochemical processes can be modulated using this strategy. In particular, we prepared and measured the quantum yield of photorelease of a series of 7-azetidinyl-4-methyl coumarin esters and compared it to their 7-diethylamino and julolidine-fused analogues. The efficiency of the photorelease reactions of the azetidinyl-substituted compounds was 2- to 5-fold higher than the corresponding diethylamino coumarins. We investigated the origin of this effect in model fluorophores and in the photoactivatable esters, and found that H-bonding with the solvent seems to be the prominent deactivation channel inhibited upon substitution with an azetidinyl ring. We anticipate that this substitution strategy could be used to modulate other photochemical processes with applications in chemical biology, catalysis and materials science.

Prediction of 195 Pt NMR of photoactivable diazido- and azine-Pt(IV) anticancer agents by DFT computational protocols

¹⁹⁵ Pt NMR chemical shifts for a series of large-sized photoactivable anticancer diazido-Pt(IV), homopiperizine-Pt(IV) and multifunctional azine-Pt(IV) complexes hardly to be probed experimentally and by sophisticated four-component and two-component relativistic calculations are predicted with high accuracy by density functional theory computational protocols. The calculated ¹⁹⁵ Pt NMR chemical shifts constitute a crucial descriptor for making highly predictive one-parameter quantitative structure activity relationships models that help in designing photoactivable Pt(IV)-based antitumor agents with high cytotoxicity and selectivity. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Interaction between transition metals and phenylalanine: a combined experimental and computational study

Some transition metal complexes of phenylalanine of general formula [M(C9H10NO2)2]; where M=Mn(II), Co(II), Ni(II), Cu(II) and Zn(II) are prepared in aqueous medium and characterized by spectroscopic, thermo-gravimetric (TG) and magnetic susceptibility analysis. Density functional theory (DFT) has been employed calculating the equilibrium geometries and vibrational frequencies of those complexes at B3LYP level of theory using 6-31G(d) and SDD basis sets. In addition, frontier molecular orbital and time-dependent density functional theory (TD-DFT) calculations are performed with CAM-B3LYP/6-31+G(d,p) and B3LYP/SDD level of theories. Thermo-gravimetric analysis confirms the composition of the complexes by comparing the experimental and calculated data for C, H, N and metals. Experimental and computed IR results predict a significant change in vibrational frequencies of metal-phenylalanine complexes compared to free ligand. DFT calculation confirms that Mn, Co, Ni and Cu complexes form square planar structure whereas Zn adopts distorted tetrahedral geometry. The metal-oxygen bonds in the optimized geometry of all complexes are shorter compared to the metal-nitrogen bonds which is consistent with a previous study. Cation-binding energy, enthalpy and Gibbs free energy indicates that these complexes are thermodynamically stable. UV-vis and TD-DFT studies reveal that these complexes demonstrate representative metal-to-ligand charge transfer (MLCT) and d-d transitions bands. TG analysis and IR spectra of the metal complexes strongly support the absence of water in crystallization. Magnetic susceptibility data of the complexes exhibits that all except Zn(II) complex are high spin paramagnetic.

Diazido mixed-amine platinum(IV) anticancer complexes activatable by visible-light form novel DNA adducts

Platinum diam(m)ine complexes, such as cisplatin, are successful anticancer drugs, but suffer from problems of resistance and side-effects. Photoactivatable Pt(IV) prodrugs offer the potential of targeted drug release and new mechanisms of action. We report the synthesis, X-ray crystallographic and spectroscopic properties of photoactivatable diazido complexes trans,trans,trans-[Pt(N3)2(OH)2(MA)(Py)] (1; MA=methylamine, Py=pyridine) and trans,trans,trans-[Pt(N3)2(OH)2(MA)(Tz)] (2; Tz=thiazole), and interpret their photophysical properties by TD-DFT modelling. The orientation of the azido groups is highly dependent on H bonding and crystal packing, as shown by polymorphs 1p and 1q. Complexes 1 and 2 are stable in the dark towards hydrolysis and glutathione reduction, but undergo rapid photoreduction with UVA or blue light with minimal amine photodissociation. They are over an order of magnitude more potent towards HaCaT keratinocytes, A2780 ovarian, and OE19 oesophageal carcinoma cells than cisplatin and show particular potency towards cisplatin-resistant human ovarian cancer cells (A2780cis). Analysis of binding to calf-thymus (CT), plasmids, oligonucleotide DNA and individual nucleotides reveals that photoactivated 1 and 2 form both mono- and bifunctional DNA lesions, with preference for G and C, similar to transplatin, but with significantly larger unwinding angles and a higher percentage of interstrand cross-links, with evidence for DNA strand cross-linking further supported by a comet assay. DNA lesions of 1 and 2 on a 50 bp duplex were not recognised by HMGB1 protein, in contrast to cisplatin-type lesions. The photo-induced platination reactions of DNA by 1 and 2 show similarities with the products of the dark reactions of the Pt(II) compounds trans-[PtCl2(MA)(Py)] (5) and trans-[PtCl2(MA)(Tz)] (6). Following photoactivation, complex 2 reacted most rapidly with CT DNA, followed by 1, whereas the dark reactions of 5 and 6 with DNA were comparatively slow. Complexes 1 and 2 can therefore give rapid potent photocytotoxicity and novel DNA lesions in cancer cells, with no activity in the absence of irradiation.