Supramolecular compounds assembled by dinuclear zinc(II) species containing Robson-type macrocycles and diverse organic subunits (4,4 -bipyridine, 2,2 -bipyridine, pyrazine, 4-aminopyridine, 4-pyridinecarboxylate, pyridine, and quinoline) are reviewed. Various structural motifs such as molecular ladder, molecular ladder element and so forth have been generated. Structural attributes associated with each motif will be elucidated based on unambiguous single crystal X-ray analysis. Hydrogen bonding especially of the non-classical type, involved in the assembly are also discussed because of its crucial impact on the architecture of the final product.

Abstract-Eight new camphorato platinum complexes have been synthesized and evaluated for their in vitro cytotoxicity against HL-60 human leukemia, 3AO human ovarian carcinoma, BEL-7402 human hepatocarcinoma, and A549 human lung carcinoma cell lines. Most complexes showed good cytotoxic activity against the above-selected cell lines. Among the complexes, two compounds were assayed for their in vivo antitumor activity against LS-174T human colon carcinoma cells implanted in mice. One complex exhibited not only higher in vivo antitumor activity, but also less toxicity than oxaliplatin when it was administered intravenously at a dose of 6mg/kg three times.

A series of novel cisplatin-type platinum complexes, formulated as [PtA2(OCOCH2OR)2] (A2 = two monoamines or one diamine, R is an alkyl group), were designed, characteristic of alkoxyacetate as carboxylato ligands. The pertinent compounds were prepared and characterized by elementary analyses, IR, 1H NMR, and ESI-MS spectra. The cytotoxic activities of compound 1a in vitro toward HL-60 human leukemia and BEL-7402 human hepatocellular carcinoma cell lines were pioneeringly studied. Then, compounds 1b-3d were evaluated for their in vitro cytotoxicity against Ramos human lymphoma, 3AO human ovarian carcinoma, and A549 human non-small cell lung cancer cell lines. Most of them showed better cytotoxic activity than carboplatin against above selected cell lines.

The aggregation of molecular building blocks via selfassembly has recently been of wide interest because the potential of the ordered network directed either by metal ions or by hydrogen bonds offers opportunities to develop new approaches for functional materials.1 In the former, deliberate designs of transition metals with certain linear bifunctional ligands, e.g., 4,4

Two macrocyclic dinuclear zinc(II) complexes (1a and 1b) have been self-assembled in the presence of pyridine and 2,2 -bipyridine, respectively, to form μ2-OH-bridged bimacrocycles with a Zn4O4 cavity through coordination bonding. The X-ray structural analysis reveals that both compounds {2a: [Zn4La 2(OH)2]2(ClO4)2; 2b: [Zn4Lb 2(OH)2]2(ClO4)2} have an open-mouthed sandwich-like structure with π−π interactions between parts of two phenyl rings to strengthen two hydroxyl groups connecting the metal atoms in the same direction of the macrocycle. Furthermore, nonclassical C−H•••Cl intermolecular interactions have been observed in the crystal of 2b. In addition, the reaction of 1a with quinoline derivatives has yielded novel hydrogen-bond-supported donor-acceptor complexes {3a: [Zn2 La(H2O)2(C10H9N)2](ClO4)2}. The crystallographic study of the complex containing 2-methylquinoline indicates that two 2-methylquinoline molecules are linked to two coordinating water molecules above and below the macrocyclic framework through O−H•••N hydrogen bonds. The 2-methylquinoline plane interacts in a face-to-face fashion with the phenyl ring of adjacent macrocyclic frameworks, forming an ordered arrangement where one macrocycle and two 2-methylquinolines are arrayed alternately with almost the same separation. The interplanar distance mentioned before is ca. 3.6Å.