What does the future hold for photo-oxidizing Ru(II) complexes with polyazaaromatic ligands in medicinal chemistry?

Jonathan Ghesquière (1) , Stéphane Le Gac (2) , Lionel Marcélis (1) , Cécile Moucheron (1) , Andrée Kirsch-de Mesmaeker (1)

1 ULB - Université libre de Bruxelles
2 ISCR - Institut des Sciences Chimiques de Rennes

Since the discovery of cisplatin, the search for diagnostic or therapeutic agents based on other metals, has expanded intensively owing to the numerous possibilities offered by coordination chemistry. This mini-review focuses on recent advances in the search for Ru(II) polyazaaromatic complexes of potential interest as molecular tools applied to cellular diagnostics or as specific cellular photo-reagents for future biomedical applications. The interaction of Ru(II) polyazaaromatic complexes with living cells is reported, as well as the photo-reaction mechanisms of photo-oxidizing Ru(II) complexes with nucleic acids. The novel strategies currently developed to improve their reactivity and specificity towards DNA, more particularly in the gene-silencing framework, are also discussed.

Domaines: Catalyse

Jonathan Ghesquière, Stéphane Le Gac, Lionel Marcélis, Cécile Moucheron, Andrée Kirsch-de Mesmaeker. What does the future hold for photo-oxidizing Ru(II) complexes with polyazaaromatic ligands in medicinal chemistry?. Current Topics in Medicinal Chemistry, 2012, 12 (3), pp.185-96. ⟨10.2174/156802612799079008⟩. ⟨hal-00804920⟩