Synthesis and bioactivity evaluation of ferrocene-based hydroxamic acids as selective histone deacetylase 6 inhibitors

Histone deacetylase 6 (HDAC6) is involved in multiple regulatory processes and emerges as a promising target for treating cancer and neurodegenerative diseases. Benefited from the unique sandwich conformation of ferrocene, a series of ferrocene-based hydroxamic acids have been developed as novel HDAC6 inhibitors in this paper, especially the two ansa-ferrocenyl complexes with IC₅₀s at the nanomolar level. [3]-Ferrocenophane hydroxamic acid analog II-5 displays the most potent inhibitory activity on HDAC6 and establishes remarkable selectivity towards other HDAC isoforms. Compound II-5 dose-dependently induces accumulation of acetylated α-tubulin while having a negligible effect on the level of acetylated Histone H3, confirming its isoform selectivity. Further biological evaluation of II-5 on cancer cells corroborates its antiproliferative effect, which mainly contributed to the induction of cellular apoptosis. It is worth noting that compound II-5 demonstrates an optimal profile on human plasma stability. These results strengthen ferrocene's unique role in developing selective protein inhibitors and indicate that compound II-5 may be a suitable lead for further evaluation and development for treating HDAC6-associated disorders and diseases.

Antimicrobial evaluation of neutral and cationic iridium(III) and rhodium(III) aminoquinoline-benzimidazole hybrid complexes

A series of neutral and cationic Ir(III) and Rh(III) aminoquinoline-benzimidazole hybrid complexes were synthesised and their inhibitory activities evaluated against Plasmodium falciparum and Mycobacterium tuberculosis. In general, the hybrid complexes display good activity against the chloroquine-sensitive NF54 strain of P. falciparum. The neutral Ir(III)- and Rh(III)-Cp∗ complexes were the most active (IC₅₀ = 0.488 μM for Ir^III), maintaining activity against the multidrug-resistant K1 strain. Low to no cytotoxicity against the Chinese hamster ovarian cell line was observed for the tested complexes. Selected active hybrid complexes demonstrated significant inhibition of β-haematin formation in a cell-free NP-40 assay, suggesting an effect on the host haemoglobin degradation pathway as a potential contributing mechanism of action. When tested against M. tuberculosis H37Rv, most hybrid complexes displayed moderate to good activity. Again, the neutral complexes outperformed the cationic complexes, with the neutral Ir(III)-Cp∗ complexes proving most active (MIC₉₀ = 0.488-1.490 μM).

Tethering (Arene)Ru(II) Acylpyrazolones Decorated with Long Aliphatic Chains to Polystyrene Surfaces Provides Potent Antibacterial Plastics

The acylpyrazolone proligands HQ^R (HQ^R in general, in detail: HQ^Cy = 1-phenyl-3-methyl-4-carbonylcyclohexyl-5-pyrazolone, 4-C(O)-phenyl, HQ^Ph = 1-phenyl-3-methyl-4-benzoyl-5-pyrazolone, HQ^C17 = 1-phenyl-3-methyl-4-stearoyl-5-pyrazolone, HQ^C17,Ph = 1-phenyl-3-stearyl-4-benzoyl-5-pyrazolone) were synthesized and reacted with (arene)Ru(II) acceptors affording complexes [(arene)Ru(Q^R)Cl] (arene = cymene (cym) or hexamethylbenzene (hmb)). The complexes were characterized by elemental analyses, thermogravimetric analysis-Differntial Thermal Analysis (TGA-DTA), IR spectroscopy, ESI-MS and ¹H, and ¹³C NMR spectroscopy. Complexes [(arene)Ru(Q^R)Cl] where Q^R = Q^C17 and Q^C17,Ph, due to the long aliphatic chain in the ligand, afford nanometric dispersions in methanol via self-assembly into micellar aggregates of dimensions 50-200 nm. The antibacterial activity of the complexes was established against Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus, those containing the ligands with a long aliphatic chain being the most effective. The complexes were immobilized on polystyrene by a simple procedure, and the resulting composite materials showed to be very effective against E. coli and S. aureus.

Recent progress in the development of organometallics for the treatment of cancer

From their early successes in medicine, organometallic compounds continue to attract interest as potential chemotherapeutics to treat a range of diseases. Here, we show from recent literature selected largely from the last two years that organometallics offer unique opportunities in medicine and, increasingly, a mechanistic-based approach is applied to their development, which has not always been the case.

Bioisosteric ferrocenyl aminoquinoline-benzimidazole hybrids: Antimicrobial evaluation and mechanistic insights

Phenyl- and bioisosteric ferrocenyl-derived aminoquinoline-benzimidazole hybrid compounds were synthesised and evaluated for their in vitro antiplasmodial activity against the chloroquine-sensitive NF54 and multi-drug resistant K1 strains of the human malaria parasite, Plasmodium falciparum. All compounds were active against the two strains, generally showing enhanced activity in the K1 strain, with resistance indices less than 1. Cytotoxicity studies using Chinese hamster ovarian cells revealed that the hybrids were relatively non-cytotoxic and demonstrated selective killing of the parasite. Based on favourable in vitro antiplasmodial and cytotoxicity data, the most active phenyl (4c) and ferrocenyl (5b) hybrids were tested in vivo against the rodent Plasmodium berghei mouse model. Both compounds caused a reduction in parasitemia relative to the control, with 5c displaying superior activity (92% reduction in parasitemia at 4 × 50 mg/kg oral doses). The most active phenyl and ferrocenyl derivatives showed inhibition of β-haematin formation in a NP-40 detergent-mediated assay, indicating a possible contributing mechanism of antiplasmodial action. The most active ferrocenyl hybrid did not display appreciable reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation in a ROS-induced DNA cleavage gel electrophoresis study. The compounds were also screened for their in vitro activity against Mycobacterium tuberculosis. The hybrids containing a more hydrophobic substituent had enhanced activity (<32.7 μM) compared to those with a less hydrophobic substituent (>62.5 μM).

Controlled self-assembling structures of ferrocene-dipeptide conjugates composed of Ala-Pro-NHCH2CH2SH chain

Bioorganometallic ferrocene-dipeptide conjugates with the Ala-Pro-cysteamine chain, Fc-L-Ala-L-Pro-NHCH₂CH₂SH (2) and Fc-L-Ala-D-Pro-NHCH₂CH₂SH (4) (Fc=ferrocenoyl), were prepared by the reduction of the ferrocene-dipeptide conjugates, Fc-L-Ala-L-Pro-cystamine-L-Pro-L-Ala-Fc (1) or Fc-L-Ala-D-Pro-cystamine-D-Pro-L-Ala-Fc (3), respectively. Control of the self-assembling structures of the ferrocene-dipeptide conjugates was demonstrated by changing the chirality of the amino acid. The molecular structure of 2 composed of the L-Ala-L-Pro-NHCH₂CH₂SH chain confirmed the formation of intramolecular hydrogen bond of N-H⋯N pattern between the NH of cysteamine moiety and the nitrogen of Pro moiety. Furthermore, intermolecular hydrogen bonds between NH (Ala) and CO (Pro of another molecule) and between NH (cysteamine) and CO (the ferrocenoyl moiety of another molecule) were formed, wherein each molecule is connected to four neighboring molecules by continuous intermolecular hydrogen bonds to form the hydrogen-bonded molecular assembling structure. On the contrary, the left-handed helical assembly through an intermolecular hydrogen-bonding network of 15-membered intermolecularly hydrogen-bonded ring between NH (Ala) and CO (the ferrocenoyl moiety of another molecule) and between NH (the cysteamine moiety of another molecule) and CO (Ala) was observed in the crystal packing of 4 composed of the L-Ala-D-Pro-NHCH₂CH₂SH chain.

Synthesis, characterization and biological evaluation of novel Ru(II)-arene complexes containing intercalating ligands

Three new ruthenium(II)-arene complexes, namely [(η(6)-p-cymene)Ru(Me2dppz)Cl]PF6 (1), [(η(6)-benzene)Ru(Me2dppz)Cl]PF6 (2) and [(η(6)-p-cymene)Ru(aip)Cl]PF6 (3) (Me2dppz=11,12-dimethyldipyrido[3,2-a:2',3'-c]phenazine; aip=2-(9-anthryl)-1H-imidazo[4,5-f] [1,10] phenanthroline) have been synthesized and characterized using different spectroscopic techniques including elemental analysis. The complexes were found to be well soluble and stable in DMSO. The biological activity of the three complexes was tested in three different human cancer cell lines (A549, MDA-MB-231 and HeLa) and in one human non-cancerous cell line (MRC-5). Complexes 1 and 3, carrying η(6)-p-cymene as the arene ligand, were shown to be toxic in all cell lines in the low micromolar/subnanomolar range, with complex 1 being the most cytotoxic complex of the series. Flow cytometry analysis revealed that complex 1 caused concentration- and time-dependent arrest of the cell cycle in G2-M and S phases in HeLa cells. This event is followed by the accumulation of the sub-G1 DNA content after 48h, in levels higher than cisplatin and in the absence of phosphatidylserine externalization. Fluorescent microscopy and acridine orange/ethidium bromide staining revealed that complex 1 induced both apoptotic and necrotic cell morphology characteristics. Drug-accumulation and DNA-binding studies performed by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry in HeLa cells showed that the total ruthenium uptake increased in a time- and concentration-dependent manner, and that complex 1 accumulated more efficiently than cisplatin at equimolar concentrations. The introduction of a Me2dppz ligand into the ruthenium(II)-p-cymene scaffold was found to allow the discovery of a strongly cytotoxic complex with significantly higher cellular uptake and DNA-binding properties than cisplatin.