title: Is matching ruthenium with dithiocarbamato ligands a potent chemotherapeutic weapon in oncology?
abstract: In the last years, several metal-based compounds have been designed and biologically investigated worldwide in order to obtain chemotherapeutics with a better toxicological profile and comparable or higher antiblastic activity than the clinically-established platinum-based drugs. In this context, researchers have addressed their attention to alternative nonplatinum derivatives able to maximize the anticancer activity of the new drugs and to minimize the side effects. Among them, a number of ruthenium complexes have been developed, including the compounds NAMI-A and KP1019, now in clinical trials. Here, we report the results collected so far for a particular class of ruthenium complexes - the ruthenium(II/III)-dithiocarbamates - which proved more potent than cisplatin in vitro, even at nanomolar concentrations, against a wide panel of human tumor cell lines.
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemical Sciences, University of Padova, Via Marzolo 1, Padova, 35131, Italy.
authors.forename: Chiara
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Nardon
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemical Sciences, University of Padova, Via Marzolo 1, Padova, 35131, Italy.
authors.forename: Leonardo
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Brustolin
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemical Sciences, University of Padova, Via Marzolo 1, Padova, 35131, Italy.
authors.forename: Dolores
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Fregona
mesh_terms: D000970:Antineoplastic Agents / Q000737:chemistry / Q000627:therapeutic use / Q000633:toxicity*; D017209:Apoptosis / Q000187:drug effects*; D002945:Cisplatin / Q000627:therapeutic use / Q000633:toxicity; D056831:Coordination Complexes / Q000737:chemistry / Q000627:therapeutic use / Q000633:toxicity*; D004121:Dimethyl Sulfoxide / Q000031:analogs & derivatives / Q000737:chemistry / Q000627:therapeutic use / Q000633:toxicity; D006801:Humans; D008024:Ligands; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000473:pathology; D009942:Organometallic Compounds / Q000737:chemistry / Q000627:therapeutic use / Q000633:toxicity; D012428:Ruthenium / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000378:metabolism; D017975:Ruthenium Compounds
chemical_list: D000970:Antineoplastic Agents; D056831:Coordination Complexes; D008024:Ligands; D009942:Organometallic Compounds; D017975:Ruthenium Compounds; C113661:imidazolium-bis(imidazole)dimethylsulfoxideimidazotetrachlororuthenate(III); D012428:Ruthenium; D002945:Cisplatin; D004121:Dimethyl Sulfoxide
keywords: NAMI-A; cancer; chemoprotectant; cisplatin; dithiocarbamate; heteroleptic; homoleptic; metal complexes; redox reaction; ruthenium