Related Experiment Video
Updated: Apr 23, 2026

Modification and Functionalization of the Guanidine Group by Tailor-made Precursors
Published on: April 27, 2017
Guanidine-Based Ligands in Bioinorganic Chemistry: Coordination Modes and Applications in Anticancer Metallodrugs
Almudena Del Campo-Balguerías1, Alberto Ocaña2,3, Iván Bravo4
1Department of Inorganic, Organic and Biochemistry, Faculty of Pharmacy-Center for Innovation in Advanced Chemistry (ORFEO-CINQA), nanoDrug Unit, University of Castilla-La Mancha, Albacete, 02008, Spain, uclm.es.
Abstract:
Guanidine-containing molecules represent a versatile class of nitrogen-rich compounds whose unique structural and physicochemical features underpin a rich and tunable coordination chemistry. Their capacity to act as strong donor ligands, stabilize a variety of metal centers in different oxidation states, and access multiple coordination modes has established guanidine and guanidine-like cores as pivotal components in medicinal inorganic chemistry. This review provides a focused overview of metallodrugs for antitumor applications in which guanidine or guanidine-like ligands play a central role in metal coordination, highlighting how the coordination modes of the guanidine core translate into their application as anticancer metallodrugs. By correlating coordination mode, metal center, and ligand design with anticancer performance, this work underscores the potential of guanidine-based ligand platforms for the development of next-generation metal-based therapeutics.
More Related Videos
07:20Amide Coupling Reaction for the Synthesis of Bispyridine-based Ligands and Their Complexation to Platinum as Dinuclear Anticancer Agents
Published on: May 28, 2014
09:04A Direct, Early Stage Guanidinylation Protocol for the Synthesis of Complex Aminoguanidine-containing Natural Products
Published on: September 9, 2016
Related Concept Videos
Metal-Ligand Bonds
In these complexes, transition metals form coordinate covalent bonds, a kind of Lewis acid-base interaction in which both of the electrons in the bond are contributed by a donor (Lewis base) to an electron acceptor (Lewis acid). The Lewis acid in...
Coordination Number and Geometry
Colors and Magnetism
When atoms or molecules absorb light at the proper frequency, their electrons are excited to higher-energy orbitals. For many main group atoms and molecules, the absorbed photons are in the ultraviolet range of the electromagnetic spectrum, which cannot be detected by the human eye. For coordination compounds, the energy difference between the d orbitals often allows photons in the visible range to be absorbed and emitted, which is seen as colors by the human...
Coordination Compounds and Nomenclature
Complexometric Titration: Ligands
EDTA: Chemistry and Properties