Recent Developments in Organometallic Supramolecular Complexes as Anticancer Drugs

The research and development of organometallic supramolecular complexes as anticancer supramolecular drugs, which are aggregates mainly formed by one or more inorganic metal compounds with one or more either inorganic or organic molecules in general via coordination bonds, has been a quite rapidly developing, increasingly active and newly rising highlight interdisciplinary field. Numerous efforts have been directed toward organometallic supramolecular complexes as potential anticancer agents and the unprecedented progress has been made. This has opened up a wholly new and infinite space to create novel metal-based bioactive supermolecules. More importantly, metal-based complex supermolecules as potential anticancer agents with wide potential applications have become highlight topics in recent years, and are becoming increasingly useful and important in preventing and treating cancer diseases. In view of the rapid progress in organometallic complex anticancer supermolecules with rich variation of structural types, this work systematically reviewed the recent research and development of the whole range of metal-based supramolecular complexes as anticancer agents mainly since 2009. The perspectives of the foreseeable future and potential application of organometallic supramolecular complexes in cancer therapy were also presented. It is hoped that this review will serve as a stimulant for new thoughts in the quest for rational designs of more active and less toxic organometallic supramolecular complex anticancer drugs.

Keywords: Anticancer, cytotoxicity, metal complex, supramolecular drug, platinum, palladium, copper, cobalt.