medicinal inorganic chemistry: a web themed issue
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5910 Chem. Commun., 2013, 49, 5910--5911 This journal is c The Royal Society of Chemistry 2013
Cite this: Chem. Commun.,2013,49, 5910
Medicinal inorganic chemistry: a web themed issue
Amy M. Barrios,a Seth M. Cohenb and Mi Hee Limc
Metal ions: friend or foe?
The toxicity of metal ions has been wellpublicized and many are familiar withthe hazards associated with environmentalexposure to mercury, lead, and chromium.On the other hand, metal ions includingiron, copper, and zinc are absolutelyrequired to support life as we know it.
By exploiting the unique properties of metalcomplexes, chemists have been able to takemetal ions with significant toxicity, such asarsenic, platinum, and technetium, andturn them into therapeutic and diagnosticagents that have saved countless lives. Thefield of medicinal inorganic chemistryencompasses a wide range of topics,including: (1) the development of metal-based reagents as therapeutic and diagnosticagents for human disease; (2) the investiga-tion of the role of metal ions, metallo-proteins, and metal ion homeostasis inhealth and disease; (3) the identification ofthe role of metal ions in pathogenic proteinmisfolding; (4) the design of metal chelatorsfor use in treating metal ion overload,
exposure to toxic metal ions, or inhibitionof metalloproteins; and (5) the elucidation ofthe general functions of both endogenousand exogenous metal ions in living systemsat the molecular level. We are pleased topresent this collection of articles, reflectingthe multifaceted and multidisciplinarynature of the field, in this themed onlineissue of Chemical Communications.
The articles in this web collectionprovide a glimpse into the scope of thefield. The feature article by Nicolas Barryand Peter Sadler entitled ‘‘Exploration ofthe medical periodic table: towards newtargets’’ (DOI: 10.1039/c3cc41143e) pro-vides an excellent overview of the field,while the feature articles by Caterina
Amy M. Barrios
Amy M. Barrios is an Associate Professor inthe Department of Medicinal Chemistry atthe University of Utah College of Pharmacy.Her current research focuses on theinvestigation of bioactive gold compoundsand the development of chemical probestargeting protein tyrosine phosphatases.
Seth M. Cohen
Seth M. Cohen is a Professor and Chairof the Department of Chemistry andBiochemistry at the University of California,San Diego. His current research focuses on thedevelopment of metalloprotein inhibitorsand the functionalization of metal–organicframeworks.
Mi Hee Lim
Mi Hee Lim is an Assistant Professor ofChemistry and a Research AssistantProfessor in the Life Sciences Institute at theUniversity of Michigan. Her current researchfocuses on elucidating the roles of metal ions,proteins, and reactive oxygen species inhuman neurodegenerative diseases.
a Department of Medicinal Chemistry, University of
Utah, Salt Lake City, UT 84112, USA.
E-mail: [email protected] Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry,
University of California, San Diego, La Jolla,
CA 92093, USA. E-mail: [email protected] Department of Chemistry and Life Sciences Institute,
University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA.
E-mail: [email protected]
DOI: 10.1039/c3cc90159a
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This journal is c The Royal Society of Chemistry 2013 Chem. Commun., 2013, 49, 5910--5911 5911
Ramogida and Chris Orvig (‘‘Tumour tar-geting with radiometals for diagnosis andtherapy’’, DOI: 10.1039/c3cc41554f) andAlexis Komor and Jacqueline Barton(‘‘The path for metal complexes to a DNAtarget’’, DOI: 10.1039/c3cc00177f) providein-depth analyses of their respectivesubjects. Metal ions from titanium to goldare discussed in the communications,
covering topics as diverse as the biologicalroles of the first row transition metalsiron, copper, and zinc to the therapeuticuses of platinum and silver. Other reportsdescribe the use of radionuclides forimaging and redox-sensitive ligands inchelation therapy. The importance ofmetal binding in amyloid proteins is illu-strated, as are the challenges and rewards
of understanding biologically relevantmetal and ligand redox chemistry. Over-all, this collection of articles, while not acomprehensive overview of the field,represents some of the best work goingon today. We thank all of the authors whohave contributed to this themed issue andhope that the readers of the issue will beas inspired by the work as we have been.
Editorial ChemComm
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