Synthesis, structure and selective cytotoxicity of organometallic Cp*Ru^[II] O-Alkyl-N-phenylcarbamate sandwich complexes

Abstract

Tetraphenylborate salts of the ?6-arene Cp*RuII O-alkyl-N-phenyl carbamate organometallic sandwich complexes, [Cp*Ru(PhNHCO2R)]BPh4 for R = Me (1), Et (2), and n-Pr (3), have been prepared by a facile one-pot reaction between ruthenium trichloride, pentamethylcyclopentadiene, and phenylisocyanate in refluxing alcohol solutions, and have been characterized by Fourier-transform IR and NMR spectroscopy, electrospray mass spectrometry, and single-crystal X-ray structure determinations. In vitro cytotoxicity studies show the complexes to be potent growth inhibitors for a range of tumour cell lines, while expressing significantly lower levels of toxicity towards a normal human fibroblast cell line.