Novel Cr (III), Fe (III) and Ru (III) Vanillin Based Metallo-Pharmaceuticals for Cancer and Inflammation Treatment: Experimental and Theoretical Studies

In this study, three novel complexes comprising trivalent Cr (III), Fe (III) and Ru (III) with imine ligand derived from 2-amino-3-hydroxypyridine and o-vanillin (H2L) have been synthesized and characterized via wide range of spectroscopic and analytical tools such as H-1 NMR and C-13 NMR, infrared (IR) and UV-Vis spectrophotometry, conductivity and magnetic measurements. The obtained results along with DFT data confirmed a 1:1 (metal: ligand) stoichiometry with non-planner geometries for the three complexes. The binding action and the docking study of the prepared metal-complexes to calf thymus DNA was also studied by absorption spectra and viscosity technique, which revealed that the three complexes interact strongly with DNA through intercalative binding mode. Significantly, these metal-imine complexes showed strong and efficient anti-inflammatory and antimicrobial activities against various gram-positive (Microccus luteus), gram-negative (Escherichia coli and Serratia marcescence) bacteria, and three strains of fungus. Moreover, all complexes exhibited more potent cytotoxicity effect on the outgrowth of different types of carcinoma cells, including human colon (HCT-116 cell line), breast (MCF-7 cell line), and hepatic cellular (HepG-2), than the clinically-proven Vinblastine standard.