Synthesis of heterobimetallic gold(i) ferrocenyl-substituted 1,2,3-triazol-5-ylidene complexes as potential anticancer agents.

1,2,3-Triazol-5-ylidene (trz) complexes of gold(i) containing a ferrocenyl substituent on the C4-position of the trz ring were synthesized to yield the neutral heterobimetallic gold(i) trz chlorido (2), gold(i) trz phenyl (3), and the cationic gold(i) trz triphenylphospine (5) complexes. In order to compare the effect of silver(i) as central metal vs. gold(i), [Ag(trz)2]+ (4) was also prepared, while variation of the C4-1,2,3-triazol-5-ylidene substituent from a ferrocenyl to a phenyl group was done to prepare the monometallic analogue of 5, namely the cationic Au(i) trz triphenylphosphine complex 6. The complexes were characterised with spectroscopic and electrochemical methods, and the single crystal X-ray structures of 2-6 were determined. NMR stability studies of 5 as a representative example of the series of complexes were performed to confirm the stability of the complexes in the solvent dimethylsulfoxide and in aqueous solution. The anti-cancer potential of 5 was evaluated against the lung cancer cell lines A549 and H1975, and the human embryonic kidney cell line (HEK-293) was used as a non-cancer model. IC50 values of 0.89, 0.23 and 5.43 µM, respectively, were obtained for A549, H1975 and HEK-293, respectively, indicating the activity and selectivity of 5 for cancer cells. Fluorescence microscopy experiments as a preliminary mode-of-action study evidenced an apoptotic cell death mechanism rather than necrotic cell death.

Ruthenium(II) Polypyridyl Complexes Coordinated Directly to the Pyrrole Backbone of π-Extended Boron Dipyrromethene (Bodipy) Dyes: Synthesis, Characterization, and Spectroscopic and Electrochemical Properties.

A series of new Bodipy dyes incorporating the π-extended isoquino[5,6-c]pyrrole have been synthesized and characterized. The dyes display intense Bodipy (π-π*) transitions and emissions with high quantum efficiencies. Spectroscopic, electrochemical, and theoretical calculations are used to give insight into the frontier orbitals. Coordination of {Ru(bpy)2Cl}+ subunits to the peripheral isoquinol nitrogen atoms of the Bodipy dyes leads to three new bis-Ru(II)-polypyridyl-Bodipy complexes with the Ru(II) centers in direct contact with the dipyrrin core. Spectroscopic studies of the complexes reveal the traditional metal to ligand charge transfer (MLCT) transitions associated with Ru(dπ) to bpy(π*) transitions. However, a more intense transition above 600 nm is also observed. This transition is independent of the meso-substituents of the dipyrrin and is shifted to lower energy by as much as 25 nm compared to that of the Bodipy dyes without the Ru(II) subunits. Spectroscopic, electrochemical, and spectroelectrochemical studies suggest that the Bodipy π-orbitals are destabilized by coordination of the Ru(II) moieties. All three Ru2-Bodipy complexes show the ability to generate singlet oxygen when irradiated within the photodynamic therapy window (600-850 nm) as evidenced by singlet oxygen trapping experiments.

Antimicrobial Properties of Tris(homoleptic) Ruthenium(II) 2-Pyridyl-1,2,3-triazole "Click" Complexes against Pathogenic Bacteria, Including Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA).

A series of tris(homoleptic) ruthenium(II) complexes of 2-(1-R-1H-1,2,3-triazol-4-yl)pyridine "click" ligands (R-pytri) with various aliphatic (R = butyl, hexyl, octyl, dodecyl, and hexdecyl) and aromatic (R = phenyl and benzyl) substituents was synthesized in good yields (52%-66%). The [Ru(R-pytri)3]2+(X-)2 complexes (where X- = PF6- or Cl-) were characterized by elemental analysis, high-resolution electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (HR-ESI-MS), 1H and 13C nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) and infrared (IR) spectroscopies, and the molecular structures of six of the compounds confirmed by X-ray crystallography. 1H NMR analysis showed that the as-synthesized materials were a statistical mixture of the mer- and fac-[Ru(R-pytri)3]2+ complexes. These diastereomers were separated using column chromatography. The electronic structures of the mer- and fac-[Ru(R-pytri)3]2+ complexes were examined using ultraviolet-visible (UV-Vis) spectroscopy and cyclic and differential pulse voltammetry. The family of R-pytri ligands and the corresponding mer- and fac-[Ru(R-pytri)3]2+ complexes were tested for antimicrobial activity in vitro against both Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli bacteria. Agar-based disk diffusion assays indicated that two of the [Ru(R-pytri)3](X)2 complexes (where X = PF6- and R = hexyl or octyl) displayed good antimicrobial activity against Gram-positive S. aureus and no activity against Gram-negative E. coli at the concentrations tested. The most active [Ru(R-pytri)3]2+ complexes ([Ru(hexpytri)3]2+ and Ru(octpytri)3]2+) were converted to the water-soluble chloride salts and screened for their activity against a wider range of pathogenic bacteria. As with the preliminary screen, the complexes showed good activity against a variety of Gram-positive strains (minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) = 1-8 µg/mL) but were less effective against Gram-negative bacteria (MIC = 16-128 µg/mL). Most interestingly, in some cases, the ruthenium(II) "click" complexes proved more active (MIC = 4-8 µg/mL) than the gentamicin control (MIC = 16 µg/mL) against two strains of methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA) (MR 4393 and MR 4549). Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) experiments and propidium iodide assays suggested that the main mode of action for the ruthenium(II) R-pytri complexes was cell wall/cytoplasmic membrane disruption. Cytotoxicity experiments on human dermal keratinocyte and Vero (African green monkey kidney epithelial) cell lines suggested that the complexes were only modestly cytotoxic at concentrations well above the MIC values.