A mononuclear N,N,N,O donor schiff base Cu(II) complex inhibits bacterial biofilm formation and promotes apoptosis and cell cycle arrest in prostate cancer cells

In this work, we report a distorted square pyramidal mononuclear copper(II) complex [Cu(L)(NCS)] (1) which was obtained by the reaction of the aqueous solution of ammonium thiocyanate to a methanolic solution of copper nitrate trihydrate and corresponding Schiff-base ligands. Schiff bases, HL (C12H19N3O) act as a tetradentate Schiff base, derived from 1:1 condensation of o-hydroxyacetophenone and diethylenetriamine. The synthesized complex has been successfully characterized based on elemental analysis and Infrared (IR) spectroscopy. The structure of complex 1 was confirmed by single-crystal X-ray diffraction study. In our study, we investigated synthesis, structural characterization, antimicrobial, anti-biofilm, and anti-cancer activity, and plausible mechanism of action of a novel mononuclear copper(II) schiff base complex. Increasing microbial resistance to several commercially available or traditional antimicrobial compounds has become a major global health concern at present time. The mononuclear copper(II) complex exhibited potential antibacterial activity against two strains of the gram-negative pathogen Pseudomonas aeruginosa. The copper compound dependent damage of bacterial cell membrane and inhibition of bacterial biofilm formation were also identified. Moreover, complex 1 inhibited prostate cancer cell growth, and migration by inducing apoptosis and arresting the cell cycle at the G2/M phase. Based on the results, we are suggesting our novel mononuclear copper(II) compound as a potential candidate for the development of new antibacterial and anti-cancer drugs.