Silver(I)-N-heterocyclic carbene complexes challenge cancer; evaluation of their anticancer properties and in silico studies.

Because of the continuous need for efficient therapeutic agents against various kinds of cancers and infectious diseases, the pharmaceutical industry has to find new candidates and strategies to develop novel and efficient drugs. They increasingly use computational tools in R&D stages for screening extensive sets of drug candidates before starting pre-clinical and clinical trials. N-Heterocyclic carbenes (NHCs) can be evaluated as good drug candidates because they offer both anti-cancer and anti-inflammatory features with their general low-toxicity profiles. To date, different kinds of NHCs (Cu, Co, Ni, Au, Ag, Ru, etc.) have been synthesized and their therapeutic uses has been shown. Here, we have reviewed the recent studies focused on Ag(I)-NHC complexes and their anti-cancer activities. Also, existing examples of the usage of density functional theory and structure-activity relationship have been evaluated.

Investigation of acetylcholinesterase and mammalian DNA topoisomerases, carbonic anhydrase inhibition profiles, and cytotoxic activity of novel bis(α-aminoalkyl)phosphinic acid derivatives against human breast cancer.

The aim of this study was to evaluate biologically active novel molecules having potentials to be drugs by their antitumor properties and by activities of apoptotic caspase and topoisomerase. Following syntheses of novel eight bis(α-aminoalkyl)phosphinic acid derivatives (4a-h) as a result of array of reactions, compounds were evaluated by cytotoxic effects in vitro on human breast cancer (MCF-7) and normal endothelial (HUVEC) cell lines. All phosphinic acid derivatives were effective for cytotoxicity on both MCF-7 and HUVEC lines, while 4c, 4e, and 4f compounds were found significantly more effective. For the evaluation of antitumor properties of compounds in a highly sensitive method, their effects on inhibiting topoisomerases I and II were investigated. Also, some of the bis(α-aminoalkyl)phosphinic acid derivatives (4a, 4e-h) showed nice inhibitory action against acetylcholinesterase and human carbonic anhydrase isoforms I and II.