Chemical and Biological Properties of vanadium and Iron compounds in relation to cancer treatment and other Biological Applications- A review

Overall, we are convinced that in the future the field of medicinal inorganic chemistry will be a key part of drug development for personalized medicine, allowing also considerable advances in predictive medicine. However, we should also fight against the prejudice associated to metal-based drugs, mostly in terms of in vivo toxicity. Thus, as bioinorganic chemists, we should be able to address the difference between the toxicity related to the “naked”, non-coordinated metal ion, and that of the corresponding metal stabilized by the coordinating ligand(s). Moreover, the toxicity of metal complexes is a multifaceted subject during the development of metal-based drugs as it primarily depends on the type of selected application. In the case of metal-based radiopharmaceuticals for diagnosis or therapy toxicity is not the main matter of concern due to the low concentrations of metal-complexes administered to the patients. In order to exert pharmacological effects (e.g. cisplatin is activated by hydrolysis inside cancer cells), however, further studies are necessary to “fine tune” the stability metal complexes while maintaining their biological activity and reduce their side-effects.