👤 Rees TW

Rare diseases affect over 300 million people worldwide and are often caused by genetic variants. While variant detection has become cost-effective, interpreting these variants-particularly collecting literature-based evidence like ACMG/AMP PM3-remains complex and time-consuming. Show less

Flavonol-metal complexes can enhance the biological activity of flavonols. Inspired by the potential of ruthenium-based drugs in pharmaceutical applications, seven flavonol-Ru (II) complexes were synthesized to evaluate their biological activities. Among these compounds, compounds 8, 11, and 12 showed potent antioxidant activities. Compound 12 exhibited superior anti-inflammatory activity to natural quercetin, which served as a positive control. This study is the first to report the free radical scavenging abilities and antioxidant activity of flavonol-Ru (II) complexes. Furthermore, compound 12 demonstrated comparable efficacy to 5-FU against human non-small-cell lung cancer cells (A549). These results strongly support the potential of flavonol-Ru (II) agents. Show less

Inducing necroptosis in cancer cells is an effective approach to circumvent drug-resistance. Metal-based triggers have, however, rarely been reported. Ruthenium(II) complexes containing 1,1-(pyrazin-2-yl)pyreno[4,5-e][1,2,4]triazine were developed with a series of different ancillary ligands (Ru1-7). The combination of the main ligand with bipyridyl and phenylpyridyl ligands endows Ru7 with superior nucleus-targeting properties. As a rare dual catalytic inhibitor, Ru7 effectively inhibits the endogenous activities of topoisomerase (topo) I and II and kills cancer cells by necroptosis. The cell signaling pathway from topo inhibition to necroptosis was elucidated. Furthermore, Ru7 displays significant antitumor activity against drug-resistant cancer cells in vivo. To the best of our knowledge, Ru7 is the first Ru-based necroptosis-inducing chemotherapeutic agent. Show less

The drug-resistance of cancer cells has become a major obstacle to the development of clinical drugs for chemotherapy. In order to overcome cisplatin-resistance, seven cyclometalated ruthenium(ii) complexes were synthesized with a varying degree of fluorine substitution, for use as anticancer agents. A cytotoxicity assay testified that the complexes possessed a more cytotoxic effect than cisplatin towards the cisplatin-resistant cell line A549R. The number of fluorine atoms regulated the lipophilicity of the complexes, but the relationship was not linear. Ru1 containing one fluorine atom had the highest lipophilicity and the best therapeutic effect. The complexes enter cells through an energy-dependent pathway and then localize in the nuclei and mitochondria. The complexes induced nuclear dysfunction by the inhibition of DNA replication as well as mitochondrial dysfunction by the loss of membrane potential. The damage to these vital organelles leads to cell apoptosis via the caspase 3/7 pathway. Our results indicated that the modulation of the number of fluorine atoms in therapeutic agents can have a profound effect and Ru1 is a complex with a high potential as a drug for the treatment of cisplatin-resistant cancer. Show less

Platinum-resistant cancer cells are sensitive to changes in the levels of reactive oxidative species (ROS). Herein, we design a biotin-modified Ru(ii) complex as a photosensitizer (denoted as Ru-Biotin). Ru-Biotin can selectively target cancer cells and produce vast amounts of singlet oxygen under two-photon excitation at 820 nm leading to cell apoptosis. Ru-Biotin is therefore an excellent candidate to overcome platinum resistance via two-photon photodynamic therapy. Show less

Ru(ii) polypyridyl complexes, containing a morpholine moiety, and possessing two-photon absorption properties and pH dependent singlet oxygen production were used for stepwise lysosomes-to-mitochondria photodamage of cancer cells. Show less

Oncosis is a non-apoptotic form of programmed cell death (PCD), which differs from apoptosis in both morphological changes and inner pathways, and might hold the key to defeating a major obstacle in cancer therapy - drug-resistance, which is often a result of the intrinsic apoptosis resistance of tumours. However, despite the fact that the term "oncosis" was coined and used much earlier than apoptosis, little effort has been made to discover new drugs which can initiate this form of cell death, in comparison to drugs inducing apoptosis or any other type of PCD. So herein, we present the synthesis of a series of mitochondria-targeting cyclometalated Ir(iii) complexes, which activated the oncosis-specific protein porimin and calpain in cisplatin-resistant cell line A549R, and determined their cytotoxicity against a wide range of drug-resistant cancer types. To the best of our knowledge, these complexes are the very first metallo-components to induce oncosis in drug-resistant cancer cells. Show less

The diaminocyclohexane platinum (Pt(DACH)) derivatives ormaplatin and oxaliplatin have caused severe and dose-limiting peripheral sensory neurotoxicity in a clinical trial. We hypothesized that this toxicity could vary in relation to the biotransformation and stereochemistry of these Pt(DACH) derivatives. We prepared pure R,R and S,S enantiomers of ormaplatin (Pt(DACH)Cl4), oxaliplatin (Pt(DACH)oxalato) and their metabolites (Pt(DACH)Cl2 and Pt(DACH)methionine) and assessed their peripheral sensory neurotoxicity and tissue distribution in the rat and in vitro anti-tumour activity in human ovarian carcinoma cell lines. The R,R enantiomers of Pt(DACH)Cl4, Pt(DACH)oxalato and Pt(DACH)Cl2, induced peripheral sensory neurotoxicity at significantly lower cumulative doses (18 +/- 5.7 vs 32 +/- 2.3 micromol kg(-1); P < 0.01) and at earlier times (4 +/- 1 vs 6.7 +/- 0.6 weeks; P = 0.016) during repeat-dose treatment than the S,S enantiomers. Pt(DACH)methionine enantiomers showed no biological activity. There was no difference between Pt(DACH) enantiomers in the platinum concentration in sciatic nerve, dorsal root ganglia, spinal cord, brain or blood at the end of each experiment. Three human ovarian carcinoma cell lines (41 M, 41 McisR and SKOV-3) showed no (or inconsistent) chiral discrimination in their sensitivity to Pt(DACH) enantiomers, whereas two cell lines (CH-1 and CH-1cisR) showed modest enantiomeric selectivity favouring the R,R isomer (more active). In conclusion, Pt(DACH) derivatives exhibit enantiomeric-selective peripheral sensory neurotoxicity during repeated dosing in rats favouring S,S isomers (less neurotoxic). They exhibited less chiral discrimination in their accumulation within peripheral nerves and in vitro anti-tumour activity. Show less