An updated overview on nitrogen-rich azole-based gold coordination complexes as potent anticancer agents

The ability of gold-based complexes in diagnosis and treatment of cancers as the main worldwide health problems, along with the successful clinical reports of bioactive azole-based drugs has attracted high attention from medicinal chemists and increased the significant interest in conducting research of azole-based gold complexes. The present review gives an updated overview of the anticancer potential of nitrogen-rich azole-based gold coordination complexes with the aim of providing an insight into the correlations between the biological activity and chemical structures of these complexes to the achievement of efficient anticancer agents. Comparison of the anticancer potential of these complexes clearly indicates the role of various influencing factors in this case. Selection and designing of suitable ligands and analysis of the structure-activity relationships (SAR) of compounds is the true cornerstone and a key constituent in medicinal chemistry. The geometry of complexes, the oxidation states of the gold centers along with the effect of the donor atoms, the types of ligands and the existence of different groups in the framework of the ligands are the important parameters that determine the final bioactivity of the complexes. The synergic mechanism of action along with combination therapies of them are another approach that can overcome the limitations of some of the approved drugs. These complexes can be efficient in cancer therapy as chemotherapy agents, as photodynamic therapy (PDT) agents and as biomolecule imaging agents. We believe that this review can prompt widespread studies and progress in order to design and synthesize efficient complexes in treatment and diagnosis of cancer. Finding and concluding the molecular mechanism of action and the synergic pathway of the complexes and comparison of the corresponding data can help to the development of efficient anticancer drugs with low toxicity and least side effects with respect to the combination therapy and considering the synergic mechanism of action of them. This review will be interesting for inorganic chemists and specialists in medicinal chemistry about the discovery and development of anticancer drugs.