Research

Organometallic Therapeutic Agents and Functional Hybrid Materials

Cytotoxicity of Redox Active N-Heterocyclic Carbene Annulated Gold Complexes

Several (NHC)AuCl complexes have been reported for anticancer activity. They exploit either metal-based reactivity with the selenoenzyme Thioredoxin Reductase (TrxR) and/or mitochondrial swelling induced by their delocalized lipophilic cation (DLC) behavior to show anticancer effects. In certain cases, these complexes have proven to be more cytotoxic than cisplatin in a human urothelial cancer cell line, a prostate carcinoma cell line, and a breast carcinoma cell line. We will investigate the intrinsic antineoplastic properties of redox active ligands with the known anticancer effects of NHC-gold complexes.

An Electrochemical Approach to Control the Ring size of Cyclic Polyesters

Cyclic polyesters have attracted attention as potential drug delivery vectors; however, in order to be viable for biomedical applications, cyclic polyesters with low PDIs and enhanced molecular weight control are necessary. The zwitterionic polymerizations for preparation of cyclic polyesters using N-heterocyclic carbenes (NHCs) are promising; they deliver a higher degree of control over molecular weight distributions. However, the key concerns requiring attention are the mode of catalyst introduction and recovery, controlled reactivity, and the inability to achieve precision molecular architecture. Based on a new principle, an integrated electrochemical approach coupled with zwitterionic polymerizations will be used to address the above mentioned issues.

Functional Polymeric Hybrid Materials

Macromolecules containing metal centers are emerging as an interesting class of molecules that are targeted for potential applications such as emissive materials. The key to developing such metallopolymers hinges on the development of new tunable molecular scaffolds (linkers) that can bridge a variety of transition metals. A modular approach for synthesis of tunable molecular scaffolds incorporating NHC-dithiolene functionalities will be investigated.

Funding Agencies