Synthesis,structure and biological properties of several binary and ternary complexes of copper(II) with ciprofloxacin and 1,10 phenanthroline

In this study, a new binary complex Cu(HCip)₂](NO₃)₂ · 6H₂O (1) has been synthesized and then characterized by X-ray structure analyses. In this compound, each ciprofloxacin acts as a bidentate ligand resulting in a crystallographically planar configuration; the nitrate anions are located in apical positions with an axial distance significantly larger than the equatorial distances, which would be consistent with a very weak metal ion interaction due to the Jahn–Teller effect. In addition, both the synthesis and characterization of two new ternary complexes of ciprofloxacin–copper(II)–1,10-phenanthroline, Cu(phen)(Cip)](NO₃) · 4H₂O (2) and Cu(phen)(HCip)(NO₃)₂ · H₂O (3), have been accomplished. We have also undertaken the single crystal structural determination of 2, in which the ciprofloxacin acts as tridentate bridging ligand; the complex exhibits a five-coordinated motif in a distorted square pyramidal environment around the metal center. The chemical nuclease activity of compounds 2 and 3 has also been studied, revealing that both compounds behave as efficient chemical nucleases in the presence of ascorbate. Mechanistic studies, with various radical oxygen scavengers, indicate that the DNA cleavage reaction is mediated by hydroxyl radicals, singlet oxygen, and the superoxide anion.