Highlights of New Strategies to Increase the Efficacy of Transition Metal Complexes for Cancer Treatments

• Published in: Molecules (Basel, Switzerland) Vol. 28; no. 1; p. 273
• Main Authors: Giorgi, Ester, Binacchi, Francesca, Marotta, Carlo, Cirri, Damiano, Gabbiani, Chiara, Pratesi, Alessandro
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Switzerland MDPI AG 29.12.2022; MDPI
• Subjects: Biological activity; Cancer; Cancer therapies; Care and treatment; Catalysis; Chemotherapy; Clinical trials; Conjugation; Cytotoxicity; Drug discovery; Drugs; Gold; gold compounds; heterobimetallic complexes; Metal complexes; metal-based drugs; Methods; Neurotoxicity; Organelles; Platinum; platinum compounds; Properties; Relapse; Review; Selectivity; targeting strategies; Transition metal compounds; Italy; heterobimetallic complexes; targeting strategies; gold compounds; metal-based drugs; platinum compounds
• ISSN: 1420-3049; 1420-3049
• DOI: 10.3390/molecules28010273

Although important progress has been made, cancer still remains a complex disease to treat. Serious side effects, the insurgence of resistance and poor selectivity are some of the problems associated with the classical metal-based anti-cancer therapies currently in clinical use. New treatment approaches are still needed to increase cancer patient survival without cancer recurrence. Herein, we reviewed two promising-at least in our opinion-new strategies to increase the efficacy of transition metal-based complexes. First, we considered the possibility of assembling two biologically active fragments containing different metal centres into the same molecule, thus obtaining a heterobimetallic complex. A critical comparison with the monometallic counterparts was done. The reviewed literature has been divided into two groups: the case of platinum; the case of gold. Secondly, the conjugation of metal-based complexes to a targeting moiety was discussed. Particularly, we highlighted some interesting examples of compounds targeting cancer cell organelles according to a third-order targeting approach, and complexes targeting the whole cancer cell, according to a second-order targeting strategy.