[VO(Sal-L-tryp)(H2O)] 1 (where sal-L-tryp = N-salicylidene-L-tryptophanate) was used as a precursor to produce the novel complexes, [VO(Sal-L-tryp)(MeATSC)].1.5C2H5OH 2 (where MeATSC = 9-Anthraldehyde-N(4)-methylthiosemicarbazone), [VO(Sal-L-tryp)(N-Ethhymethohcarbthio)].H2O 3 (where N-Ethhymethohcarbthio = (E)-N-ethyl-2-(4-hydroxy-3-methoxybenzylidene)hydrazinecarbothioamide), and [VO(Sal-L-tryp)(acetylethTSC)].C2H5OH 4 (where acetylethTSC = (E)-N-ethyl-2-(1-(thiazol-2-yl)ethylidene)hydrazinecarbothioamide), by reaction with the respective thiosemicarbazone. The chemical and structural properties of these ligands and complexes were characterised by elemental analysis, ESI MS, FT-IR, UV-visible, ESR, 1H and 13C NMR spectroscopy, and X-ray crystallography. DMSO and DMSO-d6 solutions of compounds 1-4 were oxidised in air to produce vanadium(V) species which were verified by ESI MS and 51V NMR spectroscopy. Anti-cancer properties of compounds 2-4 were examined with three colon cancer cell lines, HTC-116, Caco-2, and HT-29, and also with non-cancerous colonic myofibroblasts, CCD18-Co. Compounds 2-3 exhibited less inhibitory effects in the CCD-18Co cells, indicating a possible cytotoxic selectivity towards colon cancer cells. In general, those compounds which exhibited anti-proliferative activity on cancer cells, but did not affect non-cancerous cells, may have a potential in chemotherapy.

We report the synthesis and characterisation of mixed-metal binuclear ruthenium(II)-vanadium(IV) complexes, which were used as potential photodynamic therapeutic agents for melanoma cell growth inhibition. The novel complexes, [Ru(pbt)2(phen2DTT)](PF6)2•1.5H2O 1 (where phen2DTT = 1,4-bis(1,10-phenanthrolin-5-ylsulfanyl)butane-2,3-diol and pbt = 2-(2'-pyridyl)benzothiazole) and [Ru(pbt)2(tpphz)](PF6)2•3H2O 2 (where tpphz = tetrapyrido[3,2-a:2′,3′-c:3″,2″-h:2‴,3‴-j]phenazine) were synthesised and characterised. Compound 1 was reacted with [VO(sal-L-tryp)(H2O)] (where sal-L-tryp = N-salicylidene-L-tryptophanate) to produce [Ru(pbt)2(phen2DTT)VO(sal-L-tryp)](PF6)2•5H2O 4; while [VO(sal-L-tryp)(H2O)] was reacted with compound 2 to produce [Ru(pbt)2(tpphz)VO(sal-L-tryp)](PF6)2•6H2O 3. All complexes were characterised by elemental analysis, HRMS, ESI MS, UV-visible absorption, ESR spectroscopy, and cyclic voltammetry, where appropriate. In vitro cell toxicity studies (with the 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) colorimetric assay) via dark and light reaction conditions were carried out with sodium diaqua-4,4',4”,4”'tetrasulfophthalocyaninecobaltate(II) (Na4[Co(tspc)(H2O)2]), [VO(sal-L-tryp)(phen)]•H2O, and the chloride salts of complexes 3 and 4. Such studies involved A431, human epidermoid carcinoma cells; human amelanotic malignant melanoma cells; and HFF, non-cancerous human skin fibroblast cells. Both chloride salts of complexes 3 and 4 were found to be more toxic to melanoma cells than to non-cancerous fibroblast cells, and preferentially led to apoptosis of the melanoma cells over non-cancerous skin cells. The anti-cancer property of the chloride salts of complexes 3 and 4 was further enhanced when treated cells were exposed to light, while no such effect was observed on non-cancerous skin fibroblast cells. ESR and 51V NMR spectroscopic studies were also used to assess the stability of the chloride salts of complexes 3 and 4 in aqueous media at pH 7.19. This research illustrates the potential for using mixed-metal binuclear ruthenium(II)-vanadium(IV) complexes fighting skin cancer.

The electrochemical behavior of a trinuclear ruthenium(II)-containing complex, [((phen)(2)Ru(dpp))(2)RhCl(2)](5+) (where phen = 1,10-phenanthroline, dpp = 2,3-bis(2-pyridyl)pyrazine), was studied in acetonitrile (MeCN) and aqueous solutions. In MeCN containing 0.10 M tetra-n-butylammonium perchlorate (TBAP), the complex displayed a reversible, overlapping Ru(II/III) redox process with E(1/2) = +1.21 V vs Ag/Ag(+) (10 mM), an irreversible reduction of Rh(III/I) at -0.73 V vs Ag/Ag(+), and two quasi-reversible dpp/dpp(-) couples with E(1/2) = -1.11 and -1.36 V vs Ag/Ag(+) at a Pt electrode with a scan rate of 50 mV s(-1). In 0.20 M Tris buffer solution (pH 7.4), an irreversible, overlapping Ru(II/III) oxidation at +1.48 V vs Ag/AgCl (3 M KCl), and an irreversible reduction of Rh(III/II) at -0.78 V vs Ag/AgCl were observed at a glassy carbon electrode with a scan rate of 50 mV/s. Investigations on the electrogenerated chemiluminescence (ECL) of the complex revealed that 2-(dibutylamino) ethanol (DBAE) was superior to tri-n-propylamine (TPrA) as an ECL coreactant within their entire concentration range of 10-100 mM in MeCN, and in aqueous media, as low as 1.0 nM of the complex can be detected using TPrA coreactant ECL. A maximum ECL emission of 640 nm, which is about 55 nm blue shift to its fluorescence, was observed in MeCN with DBAE as a coreactant. Interactions of the complex with calf thymus DNA (ctDNA) were conducted with a flow-cell based quartz-crystal microbalance, and a binding constant of 2.5 x 10(5) M(-1) was calculated on the basis of the Langmuir isotherm equation.

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