Atomically precise gold nanoclusters stabilized by neutral ligands as active anticancer agents

We present herein the first systematic study on the applicability of atomically precise gold nanoclusters (AuNCs) stabilized by neutral ligands such as phosphines, di-N-heterocyclic carbenes (di-NHCs) or mixtures thereof as anticancer agents. We show that these compounds feature a broad spectrum of stability under biological conditions and can exhibit very high activity (from the micromolar to the sub-micromolar range) and/or selectivity for specific tumor cell lines. Notably, activity and especially selectivity appear to be unrelated to cluster stability, suggesting that the observed bioactivity can arise from intact clusters rather than their possible decomposition products; this appears to be particularly true for the most stable clusters considered in this study, which are able to survive in a complete biological medium for prolonged periods. By varying composition and nuclearity, with emphasis on AuNCs bearing the aforementioned ligands, we demonstrate that their antitumor activity can be effectively modulated. This highlights the potential for further optimization of these systems toward targeted therapy in the context of precision medicine.