Bioinorganic Chemistry of Nickel

The Ni(II)-Binding Activity of the Intrinsically Disordered Region of Human NDRG1, a Protein Involved in Cancer Development

Nickel exposure is associated with tumors of the respiratory tract such as lung and nasal cancers, acting through still-uncharacterized mechanisms. Understanding the molecular basis of nickel-induced carcinogenesis requires unraveling the mode and the effects of Ni(II) binding to its intracellular targets. A possible Ni(II)-binding protein and a potential focus for cancer treatment is hNDRG1, a protein induced by Ni(II) through the hypoxia response pathway, whose expression correlates with higher cancer aggressiveness and resistance to chemotherapy in lung tissue. The protein sequence contains a unique C-terminal sequence of 83 residues (hNDRG1*C), featuring a three-times-repeated decapeptide, involved in metal binding, lipid interaction and post-translational phosphorylation. In the present work, the biochemical and biophysical characterization of unmodified hNDRG1*C was performed. Bioinformatic analysis assigned it to the family of the intrinsically disordered regions and the absence of secondary and tertiary structure was experimentally proven by circular dichroism and NMR. Isothermal titration calorimetry revealed the occurrence of a Ni(II)-binding event with micromolar affinity. Detailed information on the Ni(II)-binding site and on the residues involved was obtained in an extensive NMR study, revealing an octahedral paramagnetic metal coordination that does not cause any major change of the protein backbone, which is coherent with CD analysis. hNDRG1*C was found in a monomeric form by light-scattering experiments, while the full-length hNDRG1 monomer was found in equilibrium between the dimer and tetramer, both in solution and in human cell lines. The results are the first essential step for understanding the cellular function of hNDRG1*C at the molecular level, with potential future applications to clarify its role and the role of Ni(II) in cancer development.

Mixed Ni(II) and Co(II) complexes of nalidixic acid drug: Synthesis, characterization, DNA/BSA binding profile and in vitro cytotoxic evaluation against MDA-MB-231 and HepG2 cancer cell lines

In this work, herein we report the synthesis, structural characterization and in vitro cytotoxic evaluation of two mixed Co(II)/Ni(II)-nalidixic acid-bipyridyl complexes (1 and 2). The structural analysis of metal complexes 1 and 2 was carried out by analytical and multispectroscopic techniques (FT-IR, UV-vis, EPR, sXRD). The crystallographic details of complexes 1 and 2 revealed a monoclinic crystal system with P21/c space group. DFT studies of complexes were performed to get electronic structure and localization of HOMO and LUMO electron densities. Hirshfeld surface analysis of metal complexes 1 and 2 was employed to understand the various intermolecular interactions (C-H···O, N-H···H and O-H···O) that define the stability of crystal lattice structures. The comparative interaction studies of complex 1 and complex 2 with DNA/BSA were performed by diverse multispectroscopic and analytical techniques to evaluate their chemotherapeutic potential. The magnitude of the DNA binding propensity and binding mode was verified by calculating K_b, K and K_sv values. Higher binding affinity was observed in case of complex 2via intercalative mode. Furthermore, the cytotoxic assessment of complexes 1 and 2 was examined against MDA-MB-231 (triple negative human breast cancer cell line) and HepG2 (liver carcinoma cell line) employing MTT assay which revealed remarkably effecient and specific cytotoxic activity of complex 2.

Synthesis, Characterization, Single-Crystal X-ray Structure and Biological Activities of [(Z)-N′-(4-Methoxybenzylidene)benzohydrazide–Nickel(II)] Complex

(Z)-N′-(4-methoxybenzylidene)benzohydrazide (HL) and its Ni(II) complex (Ni(II)-2L) were synthesized using eco-friendly protocols. The single X-ray crystal structure of Ni(II)-2L was solved. Moreover, the structural properties were evaluated using Fourier transform infrared, proton nuclear magnetic resonance, mass, and Ultraviolet/Visible spectroscopy. The diamagnetic and thermal stability were assessed using magnetic susceptibility and thermogravimetric analysis, respectively. The biological activities of both HL and Ni(II)-2L (62.5–1000 μg/mL) against Gram-positive (Staphylococcus aureus and Streptococcus pyogenes) and Gram-negative (Escherichia coli and Pseudomonas aeruginosa) bacterial and fungal (Candida albicans, Aspergillus niger, and Aspergillus clavatus) species were studied using the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) tests method in reference to Gentamycin and Nystatin standard drugs, respectively. The results revealed an affordable, environmentally friendly, and efficient synthetic method of HL using water as a green solvent. The Ni(II)-2L complex crystallized in a distorted square planar, P21/n space group, and one Ni(II) to two bidentate negatively charged ligand ratio. The analysis of biological activity revealed higher activity of the complex against S. aureus and S. pyogenes (bacteria) and A. niger and A. clavatus (fungi) compared to the ligand. However, the highest activity was at a MIC of 62.5 μg/mL for the complex against S. pyogenes and for the ligand against E. coli. Therefore, both HL and Ni(II)-2L could be promising potential antimicrobials and their selective activity could be an additional benefit of these bioactive materials.