Modulating anti-inflammatory and anticancer properties by designing a family of metal-complexes based on 5-nitropicolinic acid

A new family of six complexes based on 5-nitropicolinic acid (5-npic) and transition metals has been obtained: [M(5-npic) 2 ] n (M II = Mn ( 1 ) and Cd ( 2 )), [Cu(5-npic) 2 ] n ( 3 ), and [M(5-npic) 2 (H 2 O) 2 ] (M II = Co ( 4 ), Ni ( 5 ), and Zn ( 6 )), which display 1D, 2D, and mononuclear structures, respectively, thanks to different coordination modes of 5-npic. After their physicochemical characterization by single-crystal X-ray diffraction (SCXRD), elemental analyses (EA), and spectroscopic techniques, quantum chemical calculations using Time-Dependent Density Functional Theory (TD-DFT) were performed to further study the luminescence properties of compounds 2 and 6 . The potential anticancer activity of all complexes was tested against three tumor cell lines, B16-F10, HT29, and HepG2, which are models widely used for studying melanoma, colon cancer, and liver cancer, respectively. The best results were found for compounds 2 and 4 against B16-F10 (IC 50 = 26.94 and 45.10 μg mL −1 , respectively). In addition, anti-inflammatory studies using RAW 264.7 cells exhibited promising activity for 2 , 3 , and 6 (IC 50 NO = 5.38, 24.10, and 17.63 μg mL −1 , respectively). This multidisciplinary study points to complex 2 , based on Cd II , as a promising anticancer and anti-inflammatory material. Transition metals and 5-nitropicolinic acid were used to create a novel family of metal-complexes. Apart from studying their luminescence properties for bio-imaging, their potential as anti-inflammatory and anticancer agents was assessed.