Bimetallic complexes constructed from asymmetrical N,N′-bis(substituted)-oxamide: Cytotoxicities, and reactivities towards DNA and protein

A new asymmetrical N,N'-bis(substituted)oxamide ligand, N-(5-chloro-2-hydroxyphenyl)-N'-(3-(dimethylamino)propyl]oxamide (C13E18N3O3Cl center dot H2O, H3L) and its two binuclear complexes [Cu2L (H2O)(bpy)](ClO4)center dot CH3OH (1) and [Ni2L(bPY)(2)](ClO4) (2) [bpy = 2.2'-bipyridine] have been synthesized and characterized by X-ray single-crystal diffraction. In the crystal structure, H3L adopting a transoid conformation occurs as a neutral molecule linked with a water molecule by an intermolecular hydrogen bond. In the two complexes, the cis-L3- ligand bridges two metal ions with the corresponding separations of 5.2032(15) angstrom (1) and 5.2466(7) angstrom (2), respectively. In vitro cytotoxic activities, and the reactivities of the three compounds towards DNA and protein are investigated. (C) 2012 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.