Recent advances in ruthenium (III) complex-loaded nanomaterial for enhanced cancer therapy efficacy

Amid the escalating global cancer incidence, the development of effective and safe anticancer drugs is a critical priority in medical research. Addressing the clinical shortcomings of ruthenium-based anticancer drugs are currently a prominent focus of research.

Since the pioneering work with platinum derivatives, significant progress has been made in the fundamental studies of metal complexes for the treatment of a wide range of cancers, and there has been a growing interest in their properties and biomedical applications. Although chemotherapy is crucial in clinical tumor management, platinum(II) anticancer drugs like cisplatin and carboplatin suffer from severe toxicity and drug resistance issues. Among various metal-based drugs, ruthenium(III) complexes are notable for their selectivity, cytotoxic activity in vitro, and effective anticancer properties in vivo. Despite some drug candidates reaching late-stage clinical trials, their clinical application remains constrained by problems such as low solubility, poor stability, and inadequate cellular uptake.

The development of efficient and stable nanocarrier-based drug delivery systems for ruthenium(III) complexes, enhancing pharmacokinetic properties, and enabling slow, controlled release and targeted drug delivery, offers potential solutions to these limitations.

This review delves into the recent strides in nanomaterial-based drug delivery for ruthenium complexes, encompassing research on platinum (II) and ruthenium (III) metal complexes, nano-delivery system designs, and addresses pivotal challenges and future trajectories in this domain.