Copper chloride complexes with substituted 4'-phenyl-terpyridine ligands: synthesis, characterization, antiproliferative activities and DNA interactions

Eleven copper chloride coordination compounds (1-11) with 4'-(4'-substituted-phenyl)-2,2':6',2''-terpyridine ligands bearing hydrogen (L¹), cyano (L²), p-hydroxyl (L³), m-hydroxyl (L⁴), o-hydroxyl (L⁵), methoxyl (L⁶), iodo (L⁷), bromo (L⁸), chloro (L⁹), fluoro (L¹⁰) or methylsulfonyl (L¹¹) were prepared and characterized by IR spectroscopy, elemental analysis and single crystal X-ray diffraction. Antiproliferative activities against tumor cells were investigated and DNA interactions were studied by circular dichroism spectroscopy and molecular modeling methods. In vitro data demonstrate that all the compounds exhibit higher antiproliferative activities as compared to cisplatin against five human carcinoma cell lines: A549, Bel-7402, Eca-109, HeLa and MCF-7. Compound 6 with methoxyl shows the best anti-proliferation activity. Spectrophotometric results reveal the strong affinity of the compounds for binding with DNA as intercalators and induce DNA conformational transitions. The results of molecular docking studies show that the compounds interact with DNA through π-π stacking, van der Waals forces, hydrophobic interactions and hydrogen bonds. The binding energies between compound 11 and three macromolecules, including DNA duplex, oligonucleotide and DNA-Topo I complex, are the lowest. The binding stability of compounds containing hydroxyl, methoxy and methylsulfonyl groups with biological macromolecules mainly relies on the hydrogen bonds. The ability of a compound to form hydrogen bonds can promote its binding to biological targets, thereby exhibiting high antiproliferative activity.

Hyaluronic acid functionalized gold nanorods combined with copper-based therapeutic agents for chemo-photothermal cancer therapy

We herein report a hybrid nanocomposite (AuNRs-CTN@THA) which is based on hyaluronic acid-coated gold nanorods with loading of a copper complex through strong bonds. AuNRs-CTN@THA exhibits durable photothermal conversion capacity for pH-dominant and pH/temperature dual sensitive drug release, accomplishing synergetic antitumor efficacy and deep tumor penetration.

Anion–Cation Recognition Pattern, Thermal Stability and DFT-Calculations in the Crystal Structure of H2dap[Cd(HEDTA)(H2O)] Salt (H2dap = H2(N3,N7)-2,6-Diaminopurinium Cation)

The proton transfer between equimolar amounts of [Cd(H2EDTA)(H2O)] and 2,6-diaminopurine (Hdap) yielded crystals of the out-of-sphere metal complex H2(N3,N7)dap[Cd(HEDTA)(H2O)]·H2O (1) that was studied by single-crystal X-ray diffraction, thermogravimetry, FT-IR spectroscopy, density functional theory (DFT) and quantum theory of “atoms-in-molecules” (QTAIM) methods. The crystal was mainly dominated by H-bonds, favored by the observed tautomer of the 2,6-diaminopurinium(1+) cation. Each chelate anion was H-bonded to three neighboring cations; two of them were also connected by a symmetry-related anti-parallel π,π-staking interaction. Our results are in clear contrast with that previously reported for H2(N1,N9)ade [Cu(HEDTA)(H2O)]·2H2O (EGOWIG in Cambridge Structural Database (CSD), Hade = adenine), in which H-bonds and π,π-stacking played relevant roles in the anion–cation interaction and the recognition between two pairs of ions, respectively. Factors contributing in such remarkable differences are discussed on the basis of the additional presence of the exocyclic 2-amino group in 2,6-diaminopurinium(1+) ion.

The bis-phenanthridinium system flexibility and position of covalently bound uracil finely tunes the interaction with polynucleotides

A series of structurally similar bis-phenanthridinium derivatives, some with uracil at different positions, revealed different interactions with various polynucleotides. The uniform binding of mononucleotides to all studied compounds by "cyclobisintercaland" binding type indicated that compound-polynucleotide interaction selectivity was the consequence of polynucleotide secondary structure and not direct nucleobase recognition. Although affinity and fluorimetric response of all studied compounds toward ds-DNA/RNA was similar, the thermal denaturation and ICD signal-based sensing was highly sensitive to polynucleotide basepair composition and secondary structure. In particular, for the specific poly rAH(+)-poly rAH(+) double helix MD parameters are newly developed and used for analysis of its complexes. The highly sensitive orientation of phenanthridinium as well as the role of the uracil substituent, both binding interactions finely tuned by the steric and binding properties of the DNA/RNA-ligand interaction site, offer novel structural information about binding and steric properties of particular DNA-RNA systems.

Improving nuclease activity of copper(II)-terpyridine complex through solubilizing and charge effects of glycine

Copper complexes are potential metallonucleases that may find application in biotechnology and molecular biology. In this study, a ternary copper-terpyridine complex [Cu(ttpy)(Gly)(NO3)](NO3)·H2O (1) (ttpy=4'-p-tolyl-2,2':6,2″-terpyridine) is synthesized and characterized by X-ray crystallography and ESI-MS as an artificial nuclease. Glycine (Gly) is introduced into the complex to enhance the water-solubility and electrostatic affinity for the nucleic acid target. The interaction between complex 1 and DNA has been studied by spectroscopy and gel electrophoresis, using a structural analog [Cu(ttpy)(NO3)2] (2) as the reference. Complex 1 demonstrates an increased DNA binding ability and oxidative cleavage activity towards supercoiled pBR322 DNA as compared with complex 2. The enhanced water-solubility and positive charge of complex 1 may facilitate its access to DNA and formation of hydrogen bonds with the sugar-phosphate backbone. The results indicate that carefully positioned auxiliary groups in a copper complex can significantly affect the substrate binding or activation ability and consequently the nuclease efficiency of the complex.

Effect of coordinated ligands on antiproliferative activity and DNA cleavage property of three mononuclear Cu(II)-terpyridine complexes

Three mononuclear copper(II) complexes, [Cu(tpy)Cl(2)] 1, [Cu(tpy)(NO(3))(2)(H(2)O)] 2 and [Cu(Ptpy)Cl(2)]·H(2)O·HCl 3 have been synthesised and characterized by various spectroscopic techniques and single crystal X-ray diffraction. Complexes 1 and 3 have five coordinate geometry in solid state, whereas complex 2 has six coordinate geometry. Mass spectral and EPR evidence suggest that in solution all the three complexes exist predominantly as a four coordinate species. Molecular modelling and DNA cleavage studies indicate that complexes 1 and 2 are DNA minor groove binders, whereas 3 is an intercalator. All the three complexes show nuclease activity in the presence of hydrogen peroxide. The three complexes have been found to be cytotoxic towards A549 lung adenocarcinoma cells.

Synthesis, characterization and DNA binding studies of new ruthenium(II)bisterpyridine complexes

Two new ruthenium(II) complexes, [Ru(itpy)2](PF6)2, 1 and [Ru(bitpy)2](PF6)2 2, were synthesized and characterized by ESI-Mass, UV-Visible, 1H NMR, fluorescence spectroscopy and cyclic voltammetry. Complex 1 has been characterized crystallographically. Interaction of these complexes with CT-DNA has been studied using absorption and CD spectra. Absorption spectral titration and CD spectral measurements show that complex 1 binds with DNA through intercalation. Complex 2 on the other hand shows dual mode of binding to DNA, groove binding as well as intercalation. Photo nuclease activity of these complexes has been studied using agarose gel electrophoresis and both the complexes have been shown to exhibit photonuclease activity. However, complex 1 has been found to show higher DNA cleaving efficiency compared to complex 2.