Kinetic aspects of platinum anticancer agents

Platinum(II) compounds, such as cis-[Pt(NH3)2Cl2] (cisplatin) are well known for their use as anticancer drugs. The antitumor activity of platinum drugs is attributed to their ability to bind to DNA causing its damage and subsequently inducing apoptosis in cancer cells. The kinetics of ligand exchange around platinum plays a crucial role in the activity of platinum complexes. Aquation of cisplatin to cis-[Pt(NH3)2(H2O)Cl]+ is usually the first...