Dimethyltin(IV) complexes derived from hydroxamic acid and acylhydrazone ligands: Synthesis,DNA/bovine serum albumin interaction and cytotoxicity

Two novel dimethyltin(IV) complexes, Me₂SnL¹(PyCOO)(MeOH) ( 1 ) and Me₂SnL² ( 2 ) (HL¹ = 4‐pyridinehydroxamic acid and H₂L² = 2‐hydroxy‐N′‐(2‐hydroxy‐5‐chlorophenyl)methylidene]benzoylhydrazone), were synthesized and characterized using elemental analyses, Fourier transform infrared and NMR (¹H, ¹³C) spectroscopies and single‐crystal X‐ray diffraction. In complex 1 the geometry around the tin atom is a six‐coordinated distorted octahedral configuration, while complex 2 exhibits five‐coordinated distorted trigonal bipyramid geometry. Preliminary in vitro cytotoxicity studies with two human cancer cell lines (HeLa and A549) using MTT assay show that complex 1 is more potent than complex 2 . The interactions of the two complexes with calf thymus DNA and bovine serum albumin were also investigated using UV–visible absorption spectral, thermal denaturation and viscosity measurements and docking analysis. Investigations indicate that the structures of the mixed ligands play an important role in the properties of the dimethyltin(IV) complexes, and, to some extent, the antitumor activities of the complexes are partly related to interactions with DNA and some proteins in cancer cells.