Covalent and noncovalent interactions of coordination compounds with DNA: An overview

Deoxyribonucleic acid plays a central role in crucial cellular processes, and many drugs exert their effects through binding to DNA. Since the discovery of cisplatin and its derivatives considerable attention of researchers has been focused on the development of novel anticancer metal-based drugs. Transition metal complexes, due to their great diversity in size and structure, have a big potential to modify DNA through diverse types of interactions, making them the prominent class of compounds for DNA targeted therapy. In this review we describe various binding modes of metal complexes to duplex DNA based on covalent and noncovalent interactions or combination of both. Specific examples of each binding mode as well as possible cytotoxic effects of metal complexes in tumor cells are presented.

Synthesis and Spectroscopic Investigation of a Hexaaza Lanthanum(III) Macrocycle with a Hybrid-Type G4 DNA Stabilizing Effect

Herein we present a mononuclear lanthanum(III) complex obtained in a template cyclocondensation reaction of lanthanum(III) nitrate salt, 1,2-propanediamine, and 2,6-diacetylpyridine (LaPA complex). A preliminary investigation of the biological potential of this compound was conducted using a biomedically relevant target Tel26. We found that, different from parallel G4, antiparallel G4, and duplex DNA, only a hybrid-type G4 structure of Tel26 in a K⁺ solution was significantly stabilized by ≥7 °C, which emerged in our UV melting studies. Moreover, LaPA induced structural changes in the Tel26 structure in a K⁺-deprived solution, suggesting that it may also lead to conformational changes in "non-G4" telomeric DNA.

Macrocyclic Metal Complex-DNA Conjugates for Electrochemical Sensing of Single Nucleobase Changes in DNA

The direct incorporation of macrocyclic cyclidene complexes into DNA via automated synthesis results in a new family of metal-functionalized DNA derivatives that readily demonstrate their utility through the ability of one redox-active copper(II)-containing strand to distinguish electrochemically between all four canonical DNA nucleobases at a single site within a target sequence of DNA.

Bacterial siderophore mimicking iron complexes as DNA targeting antimicrobials

Microbial secretion of siderophores for iron uptake can be employed as an efficient strategy to smuggle in bactericidal agents by conjugation to iron.