Abstract
Piano-stool-{CpRu} complexes containing 1,3,5-triaza-7-phosphaadamantane (PTA), N-methyl-1,3,5-triaza-7-phosphaadamantane (mPTA), and 3,7-dimethyl-1,3,7-triaza-5-phosphabyciclo[3.3.1]nonane (dmoPTA) were evaluated as drugs against breast cancer. The evaluated compounds include two new examples of this family, the complexes [RuCp(DMSO-κS)(HdmoPTA)(PPh3)](CF3SO3)2 (8) and [RuCp(PPh3)2-µ-dmoPTA-1κP-2κ2N,N'-PdCl2](CF3SO3) (11), which have been synthesized and characterized by NMR, IR, and single-crystal X-ray diffraction. The cytotoxic activity of compounds was evaluated against MDA-MB-231 breast cancer cells, and the three most active complexes were further tested against the hormone-dependent MCF-7 breast cancer cell line. Their cell death mechanism and ruthenium uptake were also evaluated, as well as their binding ability to human serum albumin.