Evaluation of biological activity of triruthenium and organoruthenium complexes bearing econazole and tinidazole ligands

• Grant number: 24/18589-5
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships abroad - Research Internship - Doctorate (Direct)
• Start date: February 24, 2025
• End date: February 23, 2026
• Field of knowledge: Physical Sciences and Mathematics - Chemistry - Inorganic Chemistry
• Principal Investigator: Sofia Nikolaou
• Grantee: Bruno Faria Abrantes Pinheiro
• Supervisor: Annie Castonguay
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Filosofia, Ciências e Letras de Ribeirão Preto (FFCLRP). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). Ribeirão Preto , SP, Brazil
• Institution abroad: Institut National de la Recherche Scientifique (INRS), Canada
• Associated to the scholarship: 21/14050-6 - Investigation of the acid-base chemistry and biological properties of water-soluble trinuclear ruthenium carboxylates, BP.DD

Abstract

This project aims to synthesize, characterize (by UV-Vis, FT-IR, NMR, voltammetry, mass spectrometry, elemental analysis and XRD) and study the biological activitiy against bacteria, cancer and fungus of a series of metal complexes, namely [Ru(¿5-Cp)(L)(PPh3)2]BPh4 and Ru3O(CH3COO)6(L)3]Cl with L being tinidazole and econazole (widely used fungicide and bactericide agents).Interest in these complexes derives from a recent interest in developing metallodrugs to solve problems such as the drug resistance of bacteria. Recent ruthenium literature, with contribution of both laboratories of professor Nikolaou and Castonguay, showed positive results for the development of new triruthenium (general formula [Ru3O(CH3COO)6(L)3]+ with L = N-heterocycle, CO, NO, among others) and organoruthenium complexes (general formula [Ru(L1)(L2)(PPh3)2], with L1 being an arene moiety such as cyclopentadienyl or benzene and L2 a bioactive molecule) with positive results biological activity.This project also brings together the mutual interest of our laboratory and professor Castonguay's laboratory to develop metallodrugs while comparing different structure vs biological activity aspects like the nuclearity of the complex (mononuclear vs trinuclear), different ligands and different overall organometallic structures, such as the ones developed by other students in professor Nikolaou's laboratory (more details discussed in Justification).