• Iridium
• anticancer
• complexes

Chemotherapy is widely used in treatments for cancers, and Platinum compounds play an important role in this respect. New generation of metal-based anticancer drugs may offer a solution against platinum resistance and may help to extend the range of treatable cancer diseases. Recently reported Iridium(III) complexes have shown promising anticancer activity. The mode of action of these complexes may involve both the attack to DNA and some modification of the redox balance inside cells, e.g. by promoting the oxidation of NADH to NAD+, giving an increased production of ROS. In this thesis, the synthesis and the characterization of new lridium complexes designed as anticancer compounds will be presented and discussed.