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With the aim to obtain dual acting drugs able to target both nuclear DNA and mitochondria, Pt(iv) kiteplatin derivatives having dichloroacetate (DCA) ligands in axial positions have been synthesized. The rather fast hydrolysis (t1/2 of ca. 1 h) and reduction (by ascorbic acid) of these Pt(iv) derivatives did not impede a potent pharmacological effect on tumor cells. Moreover, similarly to kiteplatin, also the Pt(iv)-DCA compounds proved to be capable of overcoming oxaliplatin-resistance, which is particularly important in view of the fact that metastatic colorectal cancer is the third most common cancer in males and the second in females. The possible role of DCA released by the Pt(iv) compounds in eliciting the antiproliferative activity has also been investigated. Pt(iv)-DCA compounds determine a substantial increase of ROS production, blockage of oxidative phosphorylation, hypopolarization of the mitochondrial membrane, and caspase-3/7 mediated apoptotic cell death.

Dual delivery of dichloroacetate and 5-fluorouracil from Zr MOFs into cancer cells is found to enhance in vitro cytotoxicity. Tuning particle size and, more significantly, surface chemistry, further improves cytotoxicity by promoting caveolae-mediated endocytosis and cytosolic cargo delivery.

Platinum agents can cause DNA damage and thus induce apoptosis of cancer cells, which has made them the backbone of cancer chemotherapy regimens. However, most cancers will develop drug resistance over the course of treatment. Meanwhile, most tumors meet energy needs largely by aerobic glycolysis (glycolysis in the presence of oxygen, called the Warburg effect), which is related to their resistance to apoptosis. Therefore, we have used a biodegradable polymer carrier to conjugate with DACH-Pt and dichloroacetate, a PDK inhibitor that can reverse the Warburg effect and derepress the resistance to apoptosis, thus sensitizing cancer cells to platinum. The as-prepared polymer-drug conjugates can be assembled into nanoparticles for effective delivery and better synergism. In vitro and in vivo studies revealed that the combination of polymer-DCA and polymer-DACH-Pt are much better than the free drugs administered simultaneously, in terms of both safety and antitumor efficacy.

A multifunctional hybrid platinum(IV) prodrug, which consists of both the mitochondria-targeting drug DCA and the DNA-crosslinking drug cisplatin, was synthesized and tethered to a carrier polymer to further self-assemble into micelles for intracellular delivery.

The kinetics and mechanism of the deprotection (detritylation) of 5'-O-(4,4'-dimethoxytrityl)-2'-deoxythymidine nucleoside catalysed by dichloroacetic acid to give a 4,4'-dimethoxytrityl carbocation have been studied in toluene, dichloromethane and acetonitrile. There is little or no effect of solvent polarity on the equilibrium and rate constants. Entropies of activation are highly negative approximately -105 J K(-1) mol(-1) and similarly show little variation with solvent. Addition of small amounts of water to the reaction medium reduces the detritylation rate, presumably through its effect on the solution acidity. All observations are compatible with detritylation occurring through a concerted general acid-catalysed mechanism rather than a stepwise A1 process.