(Salen)osmium(VI) nitrides catalyzed glutathione depletion in chemotherapy

Glutathione depletion provides a promising strategy for the design of non-platinum anticancer drugs. Here we report a series of electrophilic (salen)osmium(VI) nitrides that react with glutathione to generate (salen)osmium(III) ammine compounds. In vitro studies indicate that these osmium(VI) nitrides show comparable cytotoxicity to cisplatin against various carcinoma. Mechanistic studies with the representative compound [Os VI (N)(L H )(OH 2 )](PF 6 ) ( 1 , L H = N,N ' -bis(salicylidene)- o -cyclohexyldiamine dianion) suggest that 1 induces glutathione depletion, reactive oxygen species generation, endoplasmic reticulum stress, and in turn triggers death receptor-mediated apoptosis and autophagy in lung cancer cells. In vivo evaluations show that 1 can inhibit tumor xenograft growth effectively with no body weight drop. & COPY; 2023 Published by Elsevier B.V. on behalf of Chinese Chemical Society and Institute of Materia Medica, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences.

Automated summary

Glutathione depletion is a promising strategy for the development of non-platinum anticancer drugs. This study introduces a series of electrophilic (salen)osmium(VI) nitrides that react with glutathione to produce (salen)osmium(III) ammine compounds. In vitro experiments show that these osmium(VI) nitrides exhibit similar cytotoxicity to cisplatin against various types of carcinoma. Mechanistic studies suggest that one representative compound (1) induces glutathione depletion, reactive oxygen species generation, endoplasmic reticulum stress, and ultimately leads to death receptor-mediated apoptosis and autophagy in lung cancer cells. In vivo evaluations demonstrate that 1 effectively inhibits tumor xenograft growth without causing weight loss.