The designing of metal-based anticancer therapeutic agents can be optimized in a better and rapid way if the ligands utilized have standalone properties. Therefore, even when the organometallic/coordination complex (i.e., metallodrug) gets dissociated in extreme conditions, the ligand can endorse its biological properties. Herein, we have synthesized and characterized ɳ6-p-cymene ruthenium diclofenac complex. Furthermore, the ruthenium complex interactions with human serum albumin (HSA) and ct-DNA have been studied using various spectroscopic studies viz., UV, fluorescence, and circular dichroism and exhibited a significant binding propensity. Furthermore, in vitro cytotoxicity assays were carried out against human breast cancer "MCF-7" cell line. The ɳ6-p-cymene ruthenium diclofenac complex registered significant cytotoxicity with an IC50 value of ∼25.0 µM which is comparable to the standard drugs. The ɳ6-p-cymene ruthenium diclofenac complex was able to decrease the MCF-7 cell proliferation and induced significant levels of apoptosis with relatively low toxicity.
Keywords: Ruthenium diclofenac complex; apoptosis; biomolecular interaction; cytotoxicity against MCF7.