Co-CaReD · In-cell Redox Catalysis by Co(III) Metallodrugs as New Tools for Cancer Treatments

The search of new therapies for cancer is a primary EU mission. In-cell redox catalysis promoted by organometallic complexes of precious metals as Ru(II), Os(II), Rh(III) and Ir(III) is a novel promising concept to access more efficient, safer, and less invasive medicines. Co-CaReD aims to design new in-cell catalytic systems based on half-sandwich Co(III) complexes. Cobalt combines effective catalytic performances for biomedical applications and high catalytic versatility. Moreover, it is a cheap, sustainable, and biocompatible metal whose peculiar chemical properties can access unique reactivity pathways. The project will focus on the development of new synthetic catalysts, on their applications in redox reactions of therapeutic interest, involving known examples and unprecedent cases of study, and on the unveiling of their biological mechanism of action in cancer cells. Co-CaReD will be implemented in a vibrant and stimulating research environment at IMDEA Nanociencia, in Dr. Ana Pizarro research group. The project will benefit of the complementary expertise of the ER in organometallic chemistry and redox catalysis and of the supervisor in studying the intracellular reactivity at the molecular level of metal-based drugs. An intense training plan is designed to equip the researcher with the necessary skills to study the biological activity of the Co(III) catalysts including single-cell studies and to design proof-of-concept experiments that confirm the occurrence of a metal-based catalytic reactivity inside the human cells.The main goal of Co-CaReD is to generate novel redox catalytic systems based on more biocompatible, less toxic, and cheaper cobalt drug candidates, as complementary tools to noble metal complexes.