There are 90 elements on the earth’s crust. Among these, 81 are life
supporting and the remaining 9 are radioactive in nature. The human body consists of
nearly 3% of metals. Transition metals having partially filled d-subshell can easily
accept and donate electrons and hence achieve variable oxidation state. These variable
oxidation states enable the modulation of variable redox systems, which are available
in biological systems. They can also interact with a wide range of negatively charged
compounds. The aforementioned properties of transition metals have sparked the
creation of metal-based drug development that holds great promise for medicinal use.
Metal-based drugs (metallodrugs) are now used in theranostics, i.e., therapy and
diagnosis. Metal-based drugs like oxaliplatin, carboplatin, and cisplatin are being used
in the treatment of cancer. Moreover, transition metal-based drugs are also used to treat
cardiovascular diseases, inflammation, rheumatoid arthritis, ulcer, diabetes etc. In this
chapter, various oxidation states of transition metals of different series of the periodic
table are briefly discussed, along with their application in the field of medical science.
Keywords: Oxidation state, transition metal, biological activity, metallodrugs, medical application.
