Cobalt(III) complexes as potential anticancer agents: Physicochemical, structural, cytotoxic activity and DNA/protein...

Area of Science:

• Coordination Chemistry
• Bioinorganic Chemistry
• Computational Chemistry

Background:

• Cobalt(III) complexes are explored for their diverse biological applications.
• Understanding the interaction of metal complexes with DNA is crucial for developing novel therapeutic agents.

Purpose of the Study:

• To synthesize and characterize novel cobalt(III) complexes.
• To investigate their DNA binding modes, serum albumin interaction, DNA cleavage activity, and cytotoxicity against human breast cancer cells.

Main Methods:

• Synthesis and single crystal X-ray diffraction for structural determination.
• Density functional theory (DFT) calculations for molecular geometry and orbital properties.
• UV-visible absorption, fluorescence, circular dichroism, viscosity measurements, docking studies, gel electrophoresis, and in vitro cytotoxicity assays.

Main Results:

• Complexes exhibited distorted octahedral geometry around cobalt(III).
• Docking studies revealed intercalation and minor groove binding modes with CT-DNA.
• Complexes showed binding affinity to bovine serum albumin (BSA) and promoted pBR322 DNA cleavage via singlet oxygen.
• Cytotoxicity was observed against human breast cancer (MCF-7) cells.

Conclusions:

• The synthesized cobalt(III) complexes demonstrate promising DNA binding and cleavage activities.
• These complexes exhibit potential as anticancer agents against human breast cancer cells.