Rhodium, Iridium, and Ruthenium Half-Sandwich Picolinamide Complexes as Anticancer Agents

Novel rhodium, iridium, and ruthenium half-sandwich complexes containing (<i>N</i>,<i>N</i>)-bound picolinamide ligands have been prepared for use as anticancer agents. The complexes show promising cytotoxicities, with the presence, position, and number of halides having a significant effect on the corresponding IC₅₀ values. One ruthenium complex was found to be more cytotoxic than cisplatin on HT-29 and MCF-7 cells after 5 days and 1 h, respectively, and it remains active with MCF-7 cells even under hypoxic conditions, making it a promising candidate for <i>in vivo</i> studies