# Patent

## Title
Application of ruthenium complexes as nucleic acid vectors of target cell nucleuses

## Abstract

The present invention discloses an application of ruthenium complexes as nucleic acid vectors into target cell nucleuses. Experimental data shows that ruthenium (II) complexes may be effectively combined with nucleic acid sequence and may effectively change morphologies of long nucleic acid sequences to effectively deliver the nucleic acids into viable cells via transmembrane transport located within cell nucleuses, thus greatly improving transport efficiency of the nucleic acids. Based on this property, nucleic acid sequences can be conveniently transported into cells for gene therapy or fluorescent tracking or the like. The method for preparing a ruthenium coordination complex-nucleic acid complex in accordance with the present invention may provide a more effective and stable ruthenium coordination complex-nucleic acid complex.

## Background
TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The invention relates to a novel application of ruthenium complexes, especially to a novel application of ruthenium complexes as nucleic acid vectors.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Gene therapy techniques used in treating diseases, such as tumors, have increasingly drawn attentions and concerns of a large number of researchers. Gene therapy means transfecting some functional genetic materials, including siRNA, mRNA, miRNA, DNA, nucleic acid aptamers and promoter region sequences of cancer genes, into cells and expressing them in the cells to ultimately treat diseases. A key factor of gene therapy is to transfect therapeutic genes into cells by using safe and efficient vectors. Generally, viral vectors such as RNA viruses or DNA viruses, or non-viral vectors such as calcium phosphate precipitation, lipofection or microinjection and the like, are used to transfect therapeutic genes (H. Yin, R. L. Kanasty, A. A. Eltoukhy, A. J. Vegas, J. R. Dorkin, D. G. Anderson, Non-viral vectors for gene-based therapy, Nature Rev., 15, 541-555, 2014; Viktoriya Sokolova and Matthias Epple, Inorganic Nanoparticles as Carriers of Nucleic Acids into Cells, Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2008, 47, 1382-1395; S. Huo, S. Jin, X. Ma, X. Xue, K. Yang, A. Kumar, P. C. Wang, J. Zhang, Z. Hu, X.-J. Liang, Ultrasmall gold nano particles as carriers for nucleus-based gene therapy due to size-dependent nuclear entry, ACS NANO, 8(6), 5852-5862, 2014). However, due to their defects and deficiencies, clinical uses of these methods are still greatly limited.
In recent years, the study of using ruthenium (II) complexes as gene vectors has aroused widespread interests of many researchers. Kumbhar et al reported an application of ruthenium polypyridine complexes as gene vectors (S. S. Bhat, A. S. Kumbhar, A. K. Kumbhar, A. Khan, P. Lonnecke, Ruthenium(II) polypyridyl complexes as carriers for DNA delivery, Chem. Comm, 2011, 47, 11068-1070); Chao Hui et al reported a method of using ruthenium (II) polypyridyl complexes as gene vectors ( ). However, the ruthenium complexes used in these reports have relatively large molecular weight with relatively complicated synthesis processes, and have limited effects when used as gene vectors. Additionally, none of the above reports on ruthenium complexes and their optical isomers related to their use as gene vectors of target cell nucleuses. Replication and transcription of genes mainly takes place in cell nucleuses and the efficiency of self-replication and transcription of genes can be improved by nucleic acid-targeted delivery to cell nucleuses, thereby obtaining better therapeutic effects.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
One object of the invention is to provide an application of ruthenium complexes as nucleic acid vectors.
Experimental data shows that ruthenium (II) complexes having the following general formula may be effectively combined with nucleic acid sequence to change the morphologies of the long nucleic acid sequence (e.g., more than 50 base pairs) and effectively deliver the nucleic acids into viable cells via transmembrane transport located within cell nucleuses, thereby greatly improving transport efficiency of the nucleic acids. Based on this property, nucleic acid sequences can be conveniently transported into cells for gene therapy or fluorescent tracking, etc.
The ruthenium (II) complex has the following general formula:




    
    
        Wherein:
        L is an auxiliary ligand having a structural formula of:
    
    






    
    
        R is independently selected from substituted alkyl, substituted phenyl, substituted pyridyl, substituted furyl, substituted thiazole and substituted pyrrole, wherein substituted group is optionally selected from hydroxyl, nitro, halogen, amino, carboxyl, cyano, mercapto, C3-C8 cycloalkyl, SO3H, C1-C6 alkyl, C2-C6 alkenyl, C2-C6 alkynyl, hydroxyl(C1-C6)alkyl, amino(C1-C6)alkyl, CO2R′, CONR′R′, COR′, SO2R′R′, (C1-C6)alkoxyl, (C1-C6)alkylsulphide, —N═NR′, NR′R′ or trifluoro(C1-C6)alkyl; wherein R is selected from H, C1-C6 alkyl or phenyl; R1 is independently selected from hydrogen, hydroxyl, trimethylsilyl, C1-C6 alkyl or substituted C1-C6 alkyl, phenyl or substituted phenyl, pyridyl or substituted pyridyl, furyl or substituted furyl, pyrryl or substituted pyrryl, thiazolyl or substituted thiazolyl; wherein the position of R1 substituted ethynyl may be ortho-position, meta-position or para-position on the benzene ring; the number of substituted ethynyl is 1, 2 or more; R2 is independently selected from methyl, methoxyl, nitro-group and halogen; Y is an ion or acidic radical ion which makes the whole ruthenium(II) complex electrically neutral, n is the number of ions or acidic radical ions which makes the whole ruthenium(II) complex electrically neutral;
        The length of the nucleic acid sequence may be at least 4 base pairs (bp). In some embodiments, the length of the nucleic acid sequence may not be longer than 3,000 bp.
    
    


In one embodiment, the ruthenium complex may be a single chiral isomer thereof.
In some embodiments, the length of the nucleic acid sequence may not be longer than 3,000 bp. The nucleic acid is selected from the group consisting of c-myc promoter region DNA, C-kit promoter region DNA, bcl-2 promoter region DNA, miR-21, DNA of AS1411, SiRNA, microRNA, aptamer and mRNA.
In some embodiments, the nucleic acid may be a fluorophore-labeled nucleic acid.
In some embodiments, the invention also provides an application of a ruthenium coordination complex-nucleic acid complex used as a fluorescent probe, wherein the ruthenium complex is as previously described.
In some embodiments, the invention also provides a method of preparing ruthenium coordination complex-nucleic acid complex, comprising the following steps:
Uniformly mixing the ruthenium complex with the nucleic acid solution to obtain a mixture; then heating the mixture obtained to a temperature ranging from 70° C. to 100° C. and maintaining the temperature for a time period ranging from 30 seconds to 30 minutes;
Cooling the mixture; thereafter, removing free ruthenium complexes to form a ruthenium coordination complex-nucleic acid complex;
wherein the ruthenium complex has the following structural formula:




    
    
        Wherein:
        L is an auxiliary ligand having a structural formula of:
    
    






    
    
        R is independently selected from substituted alkyl, substituted phenyl, substituted pyridyl, substituted furyl, substituted thiazole and substituted pyrrole, wherein substituted group is optionally selected from hydroxyl, nitro, halogen, amino, carboxy, cyano, mercapto, C3-C8 cycloalkyl, SO3H, C1-C6 alkyl, C2-C6 alkenyl, C2-C6 alkynyl, hydroxyl(C1-C6)alkyl, amino(C1-C6)alkyl, CO2R′, CONR′R′, COR′, SO2R′R′, (C1-C6)alkoxyl, (C1-C6)alkylsulphide, —N═NR′, NR′R′ or trifluoro(C1-C6)alkyl; wherein R′ is selected from H, C1-C6 alkyl or phenyl;
        R1 is independently selected from hydrogen, hydroxyl, trimethylsilyl, C1-C6 alkyl or substituted C1-C6 alkyl, phenyl or substituted phenyl, pyridyl or substituted pyridyl, furyl or substituted furyl, pyrryl or substituted pyrryl, thiazolyl or substituted thiazolyl; wherein the position of R1 substituted ethynyl may be ortho-position, meta-position or para-position on the benzene ring; the number of substituted ethynyl is 1, 2 or more;
        R2 is independently selected from methyl, methoxyl, nitro and halogen;
        Y is an ion or acidic radical ion which makes the whole ruthenium(II) complex be electrically neutral, n is the number of ions or acidic radical ions which makes the whole ruthenium(II) complex be electrically neutral;
    
    


In some embodiments, the ruthenium complex is selected from:



















In some embodiments, the ruthenium complex is a single chiral isomer thereof.
In some embodiments, the length of the nucleic acid may not be shorter than 4 bp.
In one embodiment, the heating may be performed with a microwave.
In some embodiments, the nucleic acid may be a fluorophore-labeled nucleic acid.
The invention has the following advantageous effects:
The method for preparing a ruthenium coordination complex-nucleic acid complex in accordance with the present invention may provide a stable ruthenium coordination complex-nucleic acid complex in a more efficient manner and may provide many better effects.



BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIGS. 1-41 are structural formulas of the ruthenium coordination complexes used in examples 1-41 (if any) and Transmission Electron Microscopy images (TEMs) of the complexes obtained by combining the ruthenium coordination complexes with DNA respectively;
FIG. 42 shows distribution and location of the ruthenium coordination complex-nucleic acid (Fluorescence Activation Microscopy (FAM) fluorescence-labeled) complex (Ru(bpy)2pBEPIP](ClO4)2: FAM-c-myc pu22 DNA=1:1) in hepatic carcinoma HepG2 cells observed under a fluorescence microscope.
FIG. 43 shows distribution and location of the ruthenium coordination complex-nucleic acid (FAM fluorescence-labeled) complex (Ru(bpy)2pBEPIP](ClO4)2: FAM-c-myc pu22 DNA=1:1) in cervical carcinoma Hela cells observed under a fluorescence microscope.
FIG. 44 shows distribution and location of the ruthenium coordination complex-nucleic acid (FAM fluorescence-labeled) complex (Ru(bpy)2pBEPIP](ClO4)2:FAM-c-myc pu22 DNA=1:1) in breast cancer MCF-7 cells observed under a fluorescence microscope.
FIG. 45 shows distribution and location of the ruthenium coordination complex-nucleic acid (FAM fluorescence-labeled) complex (Λ-Ru(bpy)2pBEPIP](ClO4)2: FAM-c-myc pu22 DNA=1:1) in hepatic carcinoma HepG2 cells observed under a confocal laser scanning microscope.
FIG. 46 shows distribution and location of the ruthenium coordination complex-nucleic acid (FAM fluorescence-labeled) complex (Λ-Ru(bpy)2pBEPIP](ClO4)2:FAM-c-myc pu22 DNA=1:1) in hepatic carcinoma MCF-7 cells observed under a confocal laser scanning microscope.
FIG. 47 shows distribution and location of the ruthenium coordination complex-nucleic acid (FAM fluorescence-labeled) complex (Δ-Ru(bpy)2pBEPIP](ClO4)2: FAM-c-myc pu22 DNA=1:1) in hepatic carcinoma HepG2 cells observed under a fluorescence microscope.
FIG. 48 shows distribution and location of the ruthenium coordination complex-nucleic acid (FAM fluorescence-labeled) complex (Λ-Ru(bpy)2pEPIP](ClO4)2: FAM-AS1411 DNA=1:1) in hepatic carcinoma HepG2 cells observed under a fluorescence microscope.



DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
The ruthenium complexes used in the invention may be synthesized by methods of the applications (CN103709202A and CN103788134A) previously filed by the inventor or other known methods.
The technical schemes of the invention will be further described hereafter along with detailed examples.
The nucleic acid sequences used in the following examples are as follows:









c-myc Pu22:



(SEQ ID NO: 1)



5′-TGAGGGTGGGGAGGGTGGGGAA-3′



 



Bcl-2 Pu27:



(SEQ ID NO: 2)



5′-CGGGCGCGGGAGGAAGGGGGCGGGAGC-3′



 



c-Kit 1:



(SEQ ID NO: 3)



5′-GGGAGGGCGCTGGGAGGAGGG-3′



 



K-ras:



(SEQ ID NO: 4)



5′-GCGGTGTGGGAAGAGGGAAGAGGGGGAGGCAG-3′



 



Telomere DNA sequence:



5′-TTAGGG-3′



 



AS1411 sequence:



(SEQ ID NO: 5)



5′-GGTGGTGGTGGTTGTGGTGGTGGTGG-3′



 



miR-21RNA sequence:



(SEQ ID NO: 6)



5′-UAGCUUAUCAGACUGAUGUUGA-3′



 



PAR-1 siRNA:



(SEQ ID NO: 7)



5′-AGAUUAGUCUCCAUCAUA-3′.






Example 1: Preparation of [Ru(bpy)2pBEPIP](ClO4)2-c-myc Promoter Region DNA Complex
Experimental method: 1 mM [Ru(bpy)2pBEPIP](ClO4)2 (FIG. 1A) is uniformly mixed with 1 mM c-myc Pu22 solution in a ratio of 1:1, then the mixture obtained is heated to 90° C. and maintained at that temperature for 30 seconds to 10 minutes, then the mixture is naturally cooled down to room temperature and left to stand for 24 hours at 4° C. The reaction mixture is dialyzed against distilled water to remove the polypyridyl ruthenium (II) complexes unloaded onto the nucleic acid, thereby forming a polypyridyl ruthenium (II) coordination complex-nucleic acid complex. TEM revealed that the ruthenium complex facilitates the c-myc Pu22 sequence to self-assemble into a nanotube structure (FIG. 1B).
Example 2: Preparation of [Ru(bpy)2pBEPIP](ClO4)2-Telomere DNA Complex
Experimental method: 1 mM [Ru(bpy)2pBEPIP](ClO4)2 is uniformly mixed with 1 mM DNA (5′-TTAGGG-3′) solution in a ratio of 1:1, then the mixture obtained is heated to 90° C. and maintained at the temperature for 30 seconds to 10 minutes, then the mixture is naturally cooled down to room temperature and left to stand for 24 hours at 4° C. The reaction mixture is dialyzed against distilled water to remove the polypyridyl ruthenium (II) complexes unloaded onto the nucleic acid, thereby forming a polypyridyl ruthenium (II) coordination complex-nucleic acid complex. TEM revealed that the ruthenium complex facilitates the telomere DNA sequence to self-assemble into an analogous nanotube structure (FIG. 2).
Example 3: Preparation of [Ru(bpy)2pBEPIP](ClO4)2-bcl-2 Promoter Region DNA Complex
Experimental method: 1 mM [Ru(bpy)2pBEPIP](ClO4)2 is uniformly mixed with 1 mM Bcl-2 pu27 solution in a ratio of 1:1, then the mixture obtained is heated to 90° C. and maintained at the temperature for 30 seconds to 10 minutes, then the mixture is naturally cooled down to room temperature and left to stand for 24 hours at 4° C. The reaction mixture is dialyzed against distilled water to remove the polypyridyl ruthenium (II) complexes unloaded onto the nucleic acid, thereby forming a polypyridyl ruthenium (II) coordination complex-nucleic acid complex. TEM revealed that the ruthenium complex facilitates the telomere DNA sequence to self-assemble into an analogous nanotube structure (FIG. 3).
Example 4: Preparation of [Ru(Bpy)2pBEPIP](ClO4)2-c-Kit Promoter Region DNA Nano-Complex
Experimental method: 1 mM [Ru(bpy)2pBEPIP](ClO4)2 is uniformly mixed with 1 mM c-kit pu27 solution in a ratio of 1:1, then the mixture obtained is heated to 90° C. under microwave radiation and maintained at the temperature for 30 seconds to 10 minutes, then the mixture is naturally cooled down to room temperature. The reaction mixture is dialyzed against distilled water to remove the polypyridyl ruthenium (II) complexes unloaded onto the nucleic acid, thereby forming a polypyridyl ruthenium (II) coordination complex-nucleic acid complex. TEM revealed that the ruthenium complex facilitates the telomere DNA sequence to self-assemble into an analogous nanotube structure (FIG. 4).
Example 5: Preparation of [Ru(bpy)2pBEPIP](ClO4)2-K-Ras Promoter Region DNA Nano-complex
Experimental method: 1 mM [Ru(bpy)2pBEPIP](ClO4)2 is uniformly mixed with 1 mM K-Ras pu32 solution in a ratio of 1:1, then the mixture obtained is heated to 90° C. under microwave radiation and maintained at the temperature for 30 seconds to 10 minutes, then the mixture is naturally cooled down to room temperature. The reaction mixture is dialyzed against distilled water to remove the polypyridyl ruthenium (II) complexes unloaded onto the nucleic acid, thereby forming a polypyridyl ruthenium (II) coordination complex-nucleic acid complex. TEM revealed that the ruthenium complex facilitates the telomere DNA sequence to self-assemble into an analogous nanotube structure (FIG. 5).
Example 6: Preparation of [Ru(bpy)2pBEPIP]Cl2-Aptamer AS1411 DNA Nano-complex
Experimental method: 1 mM [Ru(bpy)2pBEPIP]Cl2 is uniformly mixed with 1 mM AS1411 DNA solution in a ratio of 1:1, then the mixture obtained is heated to 90° C. under microwave radiation and maintained at the temperature for 30 seconds to 10 minutes, then the mixture is naturally cooled down to room temperature. The reaction mixture is dialyzed against distilled water to remove the polypyridyl ruthenium (II) complexes unloaded onto the nucleic acid, thereby forming a polypyridyl ruthenium (II) coordination complex-nucleic acid complex. TEM revealed that the ruthenium complex facilitates the telomere DNA sequence to self-assemble into an analogous nanotube structure (FIG. 6).
Example 7: Preparation of [Ru(bpy)2pBEPIP]Cl2-CT-DNA Nano-Complex
Experimental method: 1 mM [Ru(bpy)2pBEPIP]Cl2 is uniformly mixed with 1 mM CT-DNA solution in a ratio of 1:1, then the mixture obtained is heated to 90° C. under microwave radiation and maintained at the temperature for 30 seconds to 10 minutes, then the mixture is naturally cooled down to room temperature and left to stand for 24 hours at 4° C. The reaction mixture is dialyzed against distilled water to remove the polypyridyl ruthenium (II) complexes unloaded onto the nucleic acid, thereby forming a polypyridyl ruthenium (II) coordination complex-nucleic acid complex. TEM revealed that the ruthenium complex facilitates the telomere DNA sequence to self-assemble into an analogous nanotube structure (FIG. 7).
Example 8: Preparation of [Ru(bpy)2pBEPIP](ClO4)2-miR-21 Nano-Complex
Experimental method: 1 mM [Ru(bpy)2pBEPIP](ClO4)2 is uniformly mixed with 10 mM miR-21 solution in a ratio of 1:1, then the mixture obtained is heated to 90° C. under microwave radiation and maintained at the temperature for 30 seconds to 10 minutes, then the mixture is naturally cooled down to room temperature and left to stand for 24 hours at 4° C. The reaction mixture is dialyzed against distilled water to remove the polypyridyl ruthenium (II) complexes unloaded onto the nucleic acid, thereby forming a polypyridyl ruthenium (II) coordination complex-nucleic acid complex. TEM revealed that the ruthenium complex facilitates the telomere DNA sequence to self-assemble into analogous nanotube structure (FIG. 8).
Example 9: Preparation of [Ru(bpy)2pBEPIP](ClO4)2-PAR-1 SiRNA Nano-Complex
Experimental method: 10 mM [Ru(bpy)2pBEPIP](ClO4)2 is uniformly mixed with 1 mM SiRNA solution in a ratio of 10:1, then the mixture obtained is heated to 90° C. under microwave radiation and maintained at the temperature for 30 seconds to 10 minutes, then the mixture is naturally cooled down to room temperature and left to stand for 24 hours at 4° C. The reaction mixture is dialyzed against distilled water to remove the polypyridyl ruthenium (II) complexes unloaded onto the nucleic acid, thereby forming a polypyridyl ruthenium (II) coordination complex-nucleic acid complex. TEM revealed that the ruthenium complex facilitates the telomere DNA sequence to self-assemble into an analogous nanotube structure (FIG. 9).
Example 10: Preparation of Λ-[Ru(bpy)2pBEPIP](ClO4)2-c-myc pu22 DNA Nano-Complex
Experimental method: 1 mM Λ-[Ru(bpy)2pBEPIP](ClO4)2 (FIG. 10A) is uniformly mixed with 1 mM c-myc Pu22 DNA solution in a ratio of 1:1, then the mixture obtained is heated to 90° C. and maintained at the temperature for 30 seconds to 10 minutes, then the mixture is naturally cooled down to room temperature and left to stand for 24 hours at 4° C. The reaction mixture is dialyzed against distilled water to remove the polypyridyl ruthenium (II) complexes unloaded onto the nucleic acid, thereby forming a polypyridyl ruthenium (II) coordination complex-nucleic acid complex. TEM revealed that the ruthenium complex facilitates the telomere DNA sequence to self-assemble into an analogous nanotube structure (FIG. 10B).
Example 11: Preparation of Δ-[Ru(bpy)2pBEPIP](ClO4)2-c-myc Promoter Region DNA Nano-Complex
Experimental method: 1 mM Δ-[Ru(bpy)2pBEPIP](ClO4)2 (FIG. 11A) is uniformly mixed with 1 mM c-myc Pu22 DNA solution in a ratio of 1:1, then the mixture obtained is heated to 90° C. and maintained at the temperature for 30 seconds to 10 minutes, then the mixture is naturally cooled down to room temperature and left to stand for 24 hours at 4° C. The reaction mixture is dialyzed against distilled water to remove the polypyridyl ruthenium (II) complexes unloaded onto the nucleic acid, thereby forming a polypyridyl ruthenium (II) coordination complex-nucleic acid complex. TEM revealed that the ruthenium complex facilitates the telomere DNA sequence to self-assemble into an analogous nanotube structure (FIG. 11B).
Example 12: Preparation of [Ru(phen)2pBEPIP](ClO4)2-c-myc Promoter Region DNA Nano-Complex
Experimental method: 1 mM [Ru(phen)2pBEPIP](ClO4)2 (FIG. 12A) is uniformly mixed with 1 mM c-myc Pu22 DNA solution in a ratio of 1:1, then the mixture obtained is heated to 90° C. and maintained at the temperature for 30 seconds to 10 minutes, then the mixture is naturally cooled down to room temperature and left to stand for 24 hours at 4° C. The reaction mixture is dialyzed against distilled water to remove the polypyridyl ruthenium (II) complexes unloaded onto the nucleic acid, thereby forming a polypyridyl ruthenium (II) coordination complex-nucleic acid complex. TEM revealed that the ruthenium complex facilitates the telomere DNA sequence to self-assemble into an analogous nanotube structure (FIG. 12B).
Example 13: Preparation of [Ru(bpy)2pTEPIP](ClO4)2-c-myc Promoter Region DNA Nano-Complex
Experimental method: 1 mM [Ru(bpy)2pTEPIP](ClO4)2 (FIG. 13A) is uniformly mixed with 1 mM c-myc Pu22 DNA solution in a ratio of 1:1, then the mixture obtained is heated to 90° C. under microwave radiation and maintained at the temperature for 30 seconds to 10 minutes, then the mixture is naturally cooled down to room temperature and left to stand for 24 hours at 4° C. The reaction mixture is dialyzed against distilled water to remove the polypyridyl ruthenium (II) complexes unloaded onto the nucleic acid, thereby forming a polypyridyl ruthenium (II) coordination complex-nucleic acid complex. TEM revealed that the ruthenium complex facilitates the telomere DNA sequence to self-assemble into an analogous nanotube structure (FIG. 13B).
Example 14: Preparation of [Ru(phen)2pTEPIP](ClO4)2-c-myc Promoter Region DNA Nano-Complex
Experimental method: 1 mM [Ru(phen)2pTEPIP](ClO4)2 (FIG. 14A) is uniformly mixed with 1 mM c-myc Pu22 DNA solution in a ratio of 1:1, then the mixture obtained is heated to 90° C. under microwave radiation and maintained at the temperature for 30 seconds to 10 minutes, then the mixture is naturally cooled down to room temperature and left to stand for 24 hours at 4° C. The reaction mixture is dialyzed against distilled water to remove the polypyridyl ruthenium (II) complexes unloaded onto the nucleic acid, thereby forming a polypyridyl ruthenium (II) coordination complex-nucleic acid complex. TEM revealed that the ruthenium complex facilitates the telomere DNA sequence to self-assemble into an analogous nanotube structure (FIG. 14B).
Example 15: Preparation of [Ru(bpy)2pEPIP](ClO4)2-c-myc Promoter Region DNA Nano-Complex
Experimental method: 1 mM [Ru(bpy)2pEPIP](ClO4)2 (FIG. 15A) is uniformly mixed with 1 mM c-myc Pu22 DNA solution in a ratio of 1:1, then the mixture obtained is heated to 90° C. under microwave radiation and maintained at the temperature for 30 seconds to 10 minutes, then the mixture is naturally cooled down to room temperature and left to stand for 24 hours at 4° C. The reaction mixture is dialyzed against distilled water to remove the polypyridyl ruthenium (II) complexes unloaded onto the nucleic acid, thereby forming a polypyridyl ruthenium (II) coordination complex-nucleic acid complex. TEM revealed that the ruthenium complex facilitates the telomere DNA sequence to self-assemble into an analogous nanotube structure (FIG. 15B).
Example 16: Preparation of [Ru(phen)2pEPIP](ClO4)2-c-myc Promoter Region DNA Nano-Complex
Experimental method: 1 mM [Ru(phen)2pEPIP](ClO4)2 (FIG. 16A) is uniformly mixed with 1 mM c-myc Pu22 DNA solution in a ratio of 1:1, then the mixture obtained is heated to 90° C. under microwave radiation and maintained at the temperature for 30 seconds to 10 minutes, then the mixture is naturally cooled down to room temperature and left to stand for 24 hours at 4° C. The reaction mixture is dialyzed against distilled water to remove the polypyridyl ruthenium (II) complexes unloaded onto the nucleic acid, thereby forming a polypyridyl ruthenium (II) coordination complex-nucleic acid complex. TEM revealed that the ruthenium complex facilitates the telomere DNA sequence to self-assemble into an analogous nanotube structure (FIG. 16B).
Example 17: Preparation of [Ru(bpy)2oBEPIP](ClO4)2-c-myc Promoter Region DNA Nano-Complex
Experimental method: 1 mM [Ru(bpy)2oBEPIP](ClO4)2 (FIG. 17A) is uniformly mixed with 1 mM c-myc Pu22 DNA solution in a ratio of 1:1, then the mixture obtained is heated to 90° C. under microwave radiation and maintained at the temperature for 30 seconds to 10 minutes, then the mixture is naturally cooled down to room temperature and left to stand for 24 hours at 4° C. The reaction mixture is dialyzed against distilled water to remove the polypyridyl ruthenium (II) complexes unloaded onto the nucleic acid, thereby forming a polypyridyl ruthenium (II) coordination complex-nucleic acid complex. TEM revealed that the ruthenium complex facilitates the telomere DNA sequence to self-assemble into an analogous nanotube structure (FIG. 17B).
Example 18: Preparation of [Ru(bpy)2mBEPIP](ClO4)2-c-myc Promoter Region DNA Nano-Complex
Experimental method: 1 mM [Ru(bpy)2mBEPIP](ClO4)2 (FIG. 18A) is uniformly mixed with 1 mM c-myc Pu22 DNA solution in a ratio of 1:1, then the mixture obtained is heated to 90° C. under microwave radiation and maintained at the temperature for 30 seconds to 10 minutes, then the mixture is naturally cooled down to room temperature and left to stand for 24 hours at 4° C. The reaction mixture is dialyzed against distilled water to remove the polypyridyl ruthenium (II) complexes unloaded onto the nucleic acid, thereby forming a polypyridyl ruthenium (II) coordination complex-nucleic acid complex. TEM revealed that the ruthenium complex facilitates the telomere DNA sequence to self-assemble into an analogous nanotube structure (FIG. 18B).
Example 19: Preparation of [Ru(phen)2oBEPIP](ClO4)2-c-myc Promoter Region DNA Nano-Complex
Experimental method: 1 mM [Ru(phen)2oBEPIP](ClO4)2 (FIG. 19A) is uniformly mixed with 1 mM c-myc Pu22 DNA solution in a ratio of 1:1, then the mixture obtained is heated to 90° C. under microwave radiation and maintained at the temperature for 30 seconds to 10 minutes, then the mixture is naturally cooled down to room temperature and left to stand for 24 hours at 4° C. The reaction mixture is dialyzed against distilled water to remove the polypyridyl ruthenium (II) complexes unloaded onto the nucleic acid, thereby forming a polypyridyl ruthenium (II) coordination complex-nucleic acid complex. TEM revealed that the ruthenium complex facilitates the telomere DNA sequence to self-assemble into an analogous nanotube structure (FIG. 19B).
Example 20: Preparation of [Ru(phen)2mBEPIP](ClO4)2-c-myc Promoter Region DNA Nano-Complex
Experimental method: 1 mM [Ru(phen)2mBEPIP](ClO4)2 (FIG. 20A) is uniformly mixed with 1 mM c-myc Pu22 DNA solution in a ratio of 1:1, then the mixture obtained is heated to 90° C. under microwave radiation and maintained at the temperature for 30 seconds to 10 minutes, then the mixture is naturally cooled down to room temperature and left to stand for 24 hours at 4° C. The reaction mixture is dialyzed against distilled water to remove the polypyridyl ruthenium (II) complexes unloaded onto the nucleic acid, thereby forming a polypyridyl ruthenium (II) coordination complex-nucleic acid complex. TEM revealed that the ruthenium complex facilitates the telomere DNA sequence to self-assemble into an analogous nanotube structure (FIG. 20B).
Example 21: Preparation of [Ru(phen)2pBEPIP](ClO4)2-c-myc Promoter Region DNA Nano-Complex
Experimental method: 1 mM [Ru(phen)2pBEPIP](ClO4)2 (FIG. 21A) is uniformly mixed with 1 mM c-myc Pu22 DNA solution in a ratio of 1:1, then the mixture obtained is heated to 90° C. under microwave radiation and maintained at the temperature for 30 seconds to 10 minutes, then the mixture is naturally cooled down to room temperature and left to stand for 24 hours at 4° C. The reaction mixture is dialyzed against distilled water to remove the polypyridyl ruthenium (II) complexes unloaded onto the nucleic acid, thereby forming a polypyridyl ruthenium (II) coordination complex-nucleic acid complex. TEM revealed that the ruthenium complex facilitates the telomere DNA sequence to self-assemble into an analogous nanotube structure (FIG. 21B).
Example 22: Preparation of [Ru(bpy)2PIP](ClO4)2-c-myc Promoter Region DNA Nano-Complex
Experimental method: 10 mM [Ru(bpy)2PIP](ClO4)2 (FIG. 22A) is uniformly mixed with 1 mM c-myc Pu22 DNA solution in a ratio of 10:1, then the mixture obtained is heated to 90° C. under microwave radiation and maintained at the temperature for 30 seconds to 10 minutes, then the mixture is naturally cooled down to room temperature and left to stand for 24 hours at 4° C. The reaction mixture is dialyzed against distilled water to remove the polypyridyl ruthenium (II) complexes unloaded onto the nucleic acid, thereby forming a polypyridyl ruthenium (II) coordination complex-nucleic acid complex. TEM revealed that the ruthenium complex facilitates the telomere DNA sequence to self-assemble into an analogous nanotube structure (FIG. 22B).
Example 23: Preparation of [Ru(phen)2PIP](ClO4)2-c-myc Promoter Region DNA Nano-Complex
Experimental method: 10 mM [Ru(phen)2PIP](ClO4)2 (FIG. 23A) is uniformly mixed with 1 mM c-myc Pu22 DNA solution in a ratio of 10:1, then the mixture obtained is heated to 90° C. under microwave radiation and maintained at the temperature for 30 seconds to 10 minutes, then the mixture is naturally cooled down to room temperature and left to stand for 24 hours at 4° C. The reaction mixture is dialyzed against distilled water to remove the polypyridyl ruthenium (II) complexes unloaded onto the nucleic acid, thereby forming a polypyridyl ruthenium (II) coordination complex-nucleic acid complex. TEM revealed that the ruthenium complex facilitates the telomere DNA sequence to self-assemble into an analogous nanotube structure (FIG. 23B).
Example 24: Preparation of [Ru(bpy)2oBrPIP](ClO4)2-c-myc Promoter Region DNA Nano-Complex
Experimental method: 1 mM [Ru(bpy)2oBrPIP](ClO4)2 (FIG. 24A) is uniformly mixed with 10 mM c-myc Pu22 DNA solution in a ratio of 1:10, then the mixture obtained is heated to 90° C. under microwave radiation and maintained at the temperature for 30 seconds to 10 minutes, then the mixture is naturally cooled down to room temperature. The reaction mixture is dialyzed against distilled water to remove the polypyridyl ruthenium (II) complexes unloaded onto the nucleic acid, thereby forming a polypyridyl ruthenium (II) coordination complex-nucleic acid complex. TEM revealed that the ruthenium complex facilitates the telomere DNA sequence to self-assemble into an analogous nanotube structure (FIG. 24B).
Example 25: Preparation of [Ru(bpy)2mBrPIP](ClO4)2-c-myc Promoter Region DNA Nano-Complex
Experimental method: 1 mM [Ru(bpy)2mBrPIP](ClO4)2 (FIG. 25A) is uniformly mixed with 10 mM c-myc Pu22 DNA solution in a ratio of 1:10, then the mixture obtained is heated to 90° C. under microwave radiation and maintained at the temperature for 30 seconds to 10 minutes, then the mixture is naturally cooled down to room temperature. The reaction mixture is dialyzed against distilled water to remove the polypyridyl ruthenium (II) complexes unloaded onto the nucleic acid, thereby forming a polypyridyl ruthenium (II) coordination complex-nucleic acid complex. TEM revealed that the ruthenium complex facilitates the telomere DNA sequence to self-assemble into an analogous nanotube structure (FIG. 25B).
Example 26: Preparation of [Ru(bpy)2pBrPIP](ClO4)2c-myc Promoter Region DNA Nano-Complex
Experimental method: 1 mM [Ru(bpy)2pBrPIP](ClO4)2 (FIG. 26A) is uniformly mixed with 1 mM c-myc Pu22 DNA solution in a ratio of 1:1, then the mixture obtained is heated to 90° C. under microwave radiation and maintained at the temperature for 30 seconds to 10 minutes, then the mixture is naturally cooled down to room temperature and left to stand for 24 hours at 4° C. The reaction mixture is dialyzed against distilled water to remove the polypyridyl ruthenium (II) complexes unloaded onto the nucleic acid, thereby forming a polypyridyl ruthenium (II) coordination complex-nucleic acid complex. TEM revealed that the ruthenium complex facilitates the telomere DNA sequence to self-assemble into an analogous nanotube structure (FIG. 26B).
Example 27: Preparation of [Ru(phen)2oBrPIP](ClO4)2-c-myc Promoter Region DNA Nano-Complex
Experimental method: 1 mM [Ru(phen)2oBrPIP](ClO4)2 is uniformly mixed with 1 mM c-myc Pu22 DNA solution in a ratio of 1:1, then the mixture obtained is heated to 90° C. under microwave radiation and maintained at the temperature for 30 seconds to 10 minutes, then the mixture is naturally cooled down to room temperature and left to stand for 24 hours at 4° C. The reaction mixture is dialyzed against distilled water to remove the polypyridyl ruthenium (II) complexes unloaded onto the nucleic acid, thereby forming a polypyridyl ruthenium (II) coordination complex-nucleic acid complex. TEM revealed that the ruthenium complex facilitates the telomere DNA sequence to self-assemble into an analogous nanotube structure (FIG. 27).
Example 28: Preparation of [Ru(phen)2mBrPIP](ClO4)2-c-myc Promoter Region DNA Nano-Complex
Experimental method: 1 mM [Ru(phen)2mBrPIP](ClO4)2 is uniformly mixed with 1 mM c-myc Pu22 DNA solution in a ratio of 1:1, then the mixture obtained is heated to 90° C. under microwave radiation and maintained at the temperature for 30 seconds to 10 minutes, then the mixture is naturally cooled down to room temperature and left to stand for 24 hours at 4° C. The reaction mixture is dialyzed against distilled water to remove the polypyridyl ruthenium (II) complexes unloaded onto the nucleic acid, thereby forming a polypyridyl ruthenium (II) coordination complex-nucleic acid complex. TEM revealed that the ruthenium complex facilitates the telomere DNA sequence to self-assemble into an analogous nanotube structure (FIG. 28).
Example 29: Preparation of [Ru(phen)2pBrPIP](ClO4)2-c-myc Promoter Region DNA Nano-Complex
Experimental method: 1 mM [Ru(phen)2pBrPIP](ClO4)2 is uniformly mixed with 1 mM c-myc Pu22 DNA solution in a ratio of 1:1, then the mixture obtained is heated to 90° C. under microwave radiation and maintained at the temperature for 30 seconds to 10 minutes, then the mixture is naturally cooled down to room temperature and left to stand for 24 hours at 4° C. The reaction mixture is dialyzed against distilled water to remove the polypyridyl ruthenium (II) complexes unloaded onto the nucleic acid, thereby forming a polypyridyl ruthenium (II) coordination complex-nucleic acid complex. TEM revealed that the ruthenium complex facilitates the telomere DNA sequence to self-assemble into an analogous nanotube structure (FIG. 29).
Example 30: Preparation of [Ru(bpy)2oMOPIP](ClO4)2-c-myc Promoter Region DNA Nano-Complex
Experimental method: 1 mM [Ru(bpy)2oMOPIP](ClO4)2 is uniformly mixed with 1 mM c-myc Pu22 DNA solution in a ratio of 1:1, then the mixture obtained is heated to 90° C. under microwave radiation and maintained at the temperature for 30 seconds to 10 minutes, then the mixture is naturally cooled down to room temperature and left to stand for 24 hours at 4° C. The reaction mixture is dialyzed against distilled water to remove the polypyridyl ruthenium (II) complexes unloaded onto the nucleic acid, thereby forming a polypyridyl ruthenium (II) coordination complex-nucleic acid complex. TEM revealed that the ruthenium complex facilitates the telomere DNA sequence to self-assemble into an analogous nanotube structure (FIG. 30).
Example 31: Preparation of [Ru(bpy)2mMOPIP](ClO4)2-c-myc Promoter Region DNA Nano-Complex
Experimental method: 1 mM [Ru(bpy)2mMOPIP](ClO4)2 is uniformly mixed with 1 mM c-myc Pu22 DNA solution in a ratio of 1:1, then the mixture obtained is heated to 90° C. under microwave radiation and maintained at the temperature for 30 seconds to 10 minutes, then the mixture is naturally cooled down to room temperature and left to stand for 24 hours at 4° C. The reaction mixture is dialyzed against distilled water to remove the polypyridyl ruthenium (II) complexes unloaded onto the nucleic acid, thereby forming a polypyridyl ruthenium (II) coordination complex-nucleic acid complex. TEM revealed that the ruthenium complex facilitates the telomere DNA sequence to self-assemble into an analogous nanotube structure (FIG. 31).
Example 32: Preparation of [Ru(bpy)2pMOPIP](ClO4)2-c-myc Promoter Region DNA Nano-Complex
Experimental method: 1 mM [Ru(bpy)2pMOPIP](ClO4)2 is uniformly mixed with 1 mM c-myc Pu22 DNA solution in a ratio of 1:1, then the mixture obtained is heated to 90° C. under microwave radiation and maintained at the temperature for 30 seconds to 10 minutes, then the mixture is naturally cooled down to room temperature and left to stand for 24 hours at 4° C. The reaction mixture is dialyzed against distilled water to remove the polypyridyl ruthenium (II) complexes unloaded onto the nucleic acid, thereby forming a polypyridyl ruthenium (II) coordination complex-nucleic acid complex. TEM revealed that the ruthenium complex facilitates the telomere DNA sequence to self-assemble into an analogous nanotube structure (FIG. 32).
Example 33: Preparation of [Ru(phen)2oMOPIP](ClO4)2-c-myc Promoter Region DNA Nano-Complex
Experimental method: 1 mM [Ru(phen)2oMOPIP](ClO4)2 (FIG. 33A) is uniformly mixed with 1 mM c-myc Pu22 DNA solution in a ratio of 1:1, then the mixture obtained is heated to 90° C. under microwave radiation and maintained at the temperature for 30 seconds to 10 minutes, then the mixture is naturally cooled down to room temperature and left to stand for 24 hours at 4° C. The reaction mixture is dialyzed against distilled water to remove the polypyridyl ruthenium (II) complexes unloaded onto the nucleic acid, thereby forming a polypyridyl ruthenium (II) coordination complex-nucleic acid complex. TEM revealed that the ruthenium complex facilitates the telomere DNA sequence to self-assemble into an analogous nanotube structure (FIG. 33B).
Example 34: Preparation of [Ru(phen)2mMOPIP](ClO4)2-c-myc Promoter Region DNA Nano-Complex
Experimental method: 1 mM [Ru(phen)2mMOPIP](ClO4)2 (FIG. 34A) is uniformly mixed with 1 mM c-myc Pu22 DNA solution in a ratio of 1:1, then the mixture obtained is heated to 90° C. under microwave radiation and maintained at the temperature for 30 seconds to 10 minutes, then the mixture is naturally cooled down to room temperature and left to stand for 24 hours at 4° C. The reaction mixture is dialyzed against distilled water to remove the polypyridyl ruthenium (II) complexes unloaded onto the nucleic acid, thereby forming a polypyridyl ruthenium (II) coordination complex-nucleic acid complex. TEM revealed that the ruthenium complex facilitates the telomere DNA sequence to self-assemble into an analogous nanotube structure (FIG. 34B).
Example 35: Preparation of [Ru(phen)2pMOPIP](ClO4)2-c-myc Promoter Region DNA Nano-Complex
Experimental method: 1 mM [Ru(phen)2pMOPIP](ClO4)2 (FIG. 35A) is uniformly mixed with 1 mM c-myc Pu22 DNA solution in a ratio of 1:1, then the mixture obtained is heated to 90° C. under microwave radiation and maintained at the temperature for 30 seconds to 10 minutes, then the mixture is naturally cooled down to room temperature and left to stand for 24 hours at 4° C. The reaction mixture is dialyzed against distilled water to remove the polypyridyl ruthenium (II) complexes unloaded onto the nucleic acid, thereby forming a polypyridyl ruthenium (II) coordination complex-nucleic acid complex. TEM revealed that the ruthenium complex facilitates the telomere DNA sequence to self-assemble into an analogous nanotube structure (FIG. 35B).
Example 36: Preparation of [Ru(bpy)2DPPZ](ClO4)2-c-myc Promoter Region DNA Nano-Complex
Experimental method: 1 mM [Ru(bpy)2DPPZ](ClO4)2 (FIG. 36A) is uniformly mixed with 1 mM c-myc Pu22 DNA solution in a ratio of 1:1, then the mixture obtained is heated to 90° C. under microwave radiation and maintained at the temperature for 30 seconds to 10 minutes, then the mixture is naturally cooled down to room temperature and left to stand for 24 hours at 4° C. The reaction mixture is dialyzed against distilled water to remove the polypyridyl ruthenium (II) complexes unloaded onto the nucleic acid, thereby forming a polypyridyl ruthenium (II) coordination complex-nucleic acid complex. TEM revealed that the ruthenium complex facilitates the telomere DNA sequence to self-assemble into an analogous nanotube structure (FIG. 36B).
Example 37: Preparation of [Ru(phen)2DPPZ](ClO4)2-c-myc Promoter Region DNA Nano-Complex
Experimental method: 1 mM [Ru(phen)2DPPZ](ClO4)2 (FIG. 37A) is uniformly mixed with 1 mM c-myc Pu22 DNA solution in a ratio of 1:1, then the mixture obtained is heated to 90° C. under microwave radiation and maintained at the temperature for 30 seconds to 10 minutes, then the mixture is naturally cooled down to room temperature and left to stand for 24 hours at 4° C. The reaction mixture is dialyzed against distilled water to remove the polypyridyl ruthenium (II) complexes unloaded onto the nucleic acid, thereby forming a polypyridyl ruthenium (II) coordination complex-nucleic acid complex. TEM revealed that the ruthenium complex facilitates the telomere DNA sequence to self-assemble into an analogous nanotube structure (FIG. 37B).
Example 38: Preparation of [Ru(bpy)23-BrDPPZ](ClO4)2-c-myc Promoter Region DNA Nano-Complex
Experimental method: 1 mM [Ru(bpy)23-BrDPPZ](ClO4)2 (FIG. 38A) is uniformly mixed with 1 mM c-myc Pu22 DNA solution in a ratio of 1:1, then the mixture obtained is heated to 90° C. under microwave radiation and maintained at the temperature for 30 seconds to 10 minutes, then the mixture is naturally cooled down to room temperature and left to stand for 24 hours at 4° C. The reaction mixture is dialyzed against distilled water to remove the polypyridyl ruthenium (II) complexes unloaded onto the nucleic acid, thereby forming a polypyridyl ruthenium (II) coordination complex-nucleic acid complex. TEM revealed that the ruthenium complex facilitates the telomere DNA sequence to self-assemble into an analogous nanotube structure (FIG. 38B).
Example 39: Preparation of [Ru(phen)23-BrDPPZ](ClO4)2-c-myc Promoter Region DNA Nano-Complex
Experimental method: 1 mM [Ru(phen)23-BrDPPZ](ClO4)2 (FIG. 39A) is uniformly mixed with 1 mM c-myc Pu22 DNA solution in a ratio of 1:1, then the mixture obtained is heated to 90° C. under microwave radiation and maintained at the temperature for 30 seconds to 10 minutes, then the mixture is naturally cooled down to room temperature and left to stand for 24 hours at 4° C. The reaction mixture is dialyzed against distilled water to remove the polypyridyl ruthenium (II) complexes unloaded onto the nucleic acid, thereby forming a polypyridyl ruthenium (II) coordination complex-nucleic acid complex. TEM revealed that the ruthenium complex facilitates the telomere DNA sequence to self-assemble into an analogous nanotube structure (FIG. 39B).
Example 40: Preparation of [Ru(bpy)23-BEDPPZ](ClO4)2-c-myc Promoter Region DNA Nano-Complex
Experimental method: 1 mM [Ru(bpy)23-BEDPPZ](ClO4)2 (FIG. 40A) is uniformly mixed with 1 mM c-myc Pu22 DNA solution in a ratio of 1:1, then the mixture obtained is heated to 90° C. under microwave radiation and maintained at the temperature for 30 seconds to 10 minutes, then the mixture is naturally cooled down to room temperature and left to stand for 24 hours at 4° C. The reaction mixture is dialyzed against distilled water to remove the polypyridyl ruthenium (II) complexes unloaded onto the nucleic acid, thereby forming a polypyridyl ruthenium (II) coordination complex-nucleic acid complex. TEM revealed that the ruthenium complex facilitates the telomere DNA sequence to self-assemble into an analogous nanotube structure (FIG. 40B).
Example 41: Preparation of [Ru(phen)23-BEDPPZ](ClO4)2-c-myc Promoter Region DNA Nano-Complex
Experimental method: 1 mM [Ru(phen)23-BEDPPZ](ClO4)2 (FIG. 41A) is uniformly mixed with 1 mM c-myc Pu22 DNA solution in a ratio of 1:1, then the mixture obtained is heated to 90° C. under microwave radiation and maintained at the temperature for 30 seconds to 10 minutes, then the mixture is naturally cooled down to room temperature and left to stand for 24 hours at 4° C. The reaction mixture is dialyzed against distilled water to remove the polypyridyl ruthenium (II) complexes unloaded onto the nucleic acid, thereby forming a polypyridyl ruthenium (II) coordination complex-nucleic acid complex. TEM revealed that the ruthenium complex facilitates the telomere DNA sequence to self-assemble into an analogous nanotube structure (FIG. 41B).
Absorption and Distribution of the Nano-complex Formed from Racemic Alkynyl Ruthenium Coordination Complex Ru(bpy)2pBEPIP](ClO4)2 and c-myc DNA (complex of Example 1) for HepG2 Cells
Cells in the logarithmic growth phase are seeded in a 2 cm cell culture vessel at a density of 2×105 cells per well. 1 mL DMEM comprising 5 μM ruthenium coordination complex-nucleic acid (FAM fluorescence-labeled) complex (Ru(bpy)2pBEPIP](ClO4)2: FAM-c-myc pu22 DNA=1:1) is added and incubated in a 5% CO2 incubator at 37° C. for 2 hours, then the incubated cells are observed under a fluorescence microscope and the results are shown in FIG. 42. As can be seen from the figure, nucleic acids can be transferred into viable cells via the chiral alkynyl ruthenium complexes and distributed in the whole cells.
Absorption and Distribution of the Nano-Complex Formed from Racemic Alkynyl Ruthenium Coordination Complex Ru(Bpy)2pBEPIP](ClO4)2 and c-Myc DNA (Complex of Example 1) for Hela Cells
Cells in the logarithmic growth phase are seeded in a 2 cm cell culture vessel at a density of 2×105 cells per well. 1 mL DMEM comprising 5 μM ruthenium coordination complex-nucleic acid (FAM fluorescence-labeled) complex (Ru(bpy)2pBEPIP](ClO4)2: FAM-c-myc pu22 DNA=1:1) is added and incubated in a 5% CO2 incubator at 37° C. for 2 hours, then the incubated cells are observed under a fluorescence microscope and the results are shown in FIG. 43. As can be seen from the figure, nucleic acids can be transferred into viable cells via the racemic alkynyl ruthenium complexes and distributed in the whole cells.
Absorption and Distribution of the Nano-Complex Formed from Racemic Alkynyl Ruthenium Coordination Complex Ru(Bpy)2pBEPIP](ClO4)2 and c-Myc DNA (Complex of Example 1) for MCF-7 Cells
Cells in the logarithmic growth phase are seeded in a 2 cm cell culture vessel at a density of 2×105 cells per well. 1 mL DMEM comprising 5 μM ruthenium coordination complex-nucleic acid (FAM fluorescence-labeled) complex (Ru(bpy)2pBEPIP](ClO4)2: FAM-c-myc pu22 DNA=1:1) is added and incubated in a 5% CO2 incubator at 37° C. for 2 hours, then the incubated cells are observed under a fluorescence microscope and the results are shown in FIG. 44. As can be seen from the figure, nucleic acids can be transferred into a viable cell via the racemic alkynyl ruthenium complexes and distributed in the whole cell.
Absorption and Distribution of the Nano-Complex Formed from L-Alkynyl Ruthenium Coordination Complex Λ-Ru(Bpy)2pBEPIP](ClO4)2 and c-Myc DNA (Complex of Example 10) for HepG2 Cells
Cells in the logarithmic growth phase are seeded in a 2 cm cell culture vessel at a density of 2×105 cells per well. 1 mL DMEM comprising 5 μM ruthenium coordination complex-nucleic acid (FAM fluorescence-labeled) complex Λ-Ru(bpy)2pBEPIP](ClO4)2: FAM-c-myc pu22 DNA=1:1) is added and incubated in a 5% CO2 incubator at 37° C. for 2 hours, then the incubated cells are observed under a fluorescence microscope and the results are shown in FIG. 45. As can be seen from the figure, nucleic acids can be transferred into a viable cell via the L-alkynyl ruthenium complexes and distributed in the cell nucleus.
Absorption and Distribution of the Nano-Complex Formed from L-Alkynyl Ruthenium Coordination Complex Λ-Ru(Bpy)2BEPIP](ClO4)2 and c-Myc DNA (Complex of Example 10) for MCF-7 Cells
Cells in the logarithmic growth phase are seeded in a 2 cm cell culture vessel at a density of 2×105 cells per well. 1 mL DMEM comprising 5 μM ruthenium coordination complex-nucleic acid (FAM fluorescence-labeled) complex Λ-Ru(bpy)2pBEPIP](ClO4)2: FAM-c-myc pu22 DNA=1:1) is added and incubated in a 5% CO2 incubator at 37° C. for 2 hours, then the incubated cells are observed under a fluorescence microscope and the results are shown in FIG. 46. As can be seen from the figure, nucleic acids can be transferred into a viable cell via the L-alkynyl ruthenium complexes and distributed in the cell nucleus.
Absorption and Distribution of the Nano-Complex Formed from R-Alkynyl Ruthenium Coordination Complex Δ-Ru(Bpy)2pBEPIP](ClO4)2 and c-Myc DNA (Complex of Example 11) for HepG2 Cells
Cells in the logarithmic growth phase are seeded in a 2 cm cell culture vessel at a density of 2×105 cells per well. 1 mL DMEM comprising 5 μM ruthenium coordination complex-nucleic acid (FAM fluorescence-labeled) complex Δ-Ru(bpy)2pBEPIP](ClO4)2: FAM-c-myc pu22 DNA=1:1) is added and incubated in a 5% CO2 incubator at 37° C. for 2 hours, then the incubated cells are observed under a fluorescence microscope and the results are shown in FIG. 47. As can be seen from the figure, nucleic acids can be transferred into a viable cell via the R-alkynyl ruthenium complexes and distributed in the cytoplasm.
Absorption and Distribution of the Nano-Complex Formed from L-Alkynyl Ruthenium Coordination Complex Λ-Ru(Bpy)2pBEPIP](ClO4)2 and AS1411 DNA (Complex of Example 11) for MCF-7 Cells
Cells in the logarithmic growth phase are seeded in a 2 cm cell culture vessel at a density of 2×105 cells per well. 1 mL DMEM comprising 5 μM ruthenium coordination complex-nucleic acid (FAM fluorescence-labeled) complex Δ-Ru(bpy)2pBEPIP](ClO4)2: FAM-AS1411 DNA=1:1) is added and incubated in a 5% CO2 incubator at 37° C. for 2 hours, then the incubated cells are observed under a fluorescence microscope and the results are shown in FIG. 48. As can be seen from the figure, nucleic acids can be transferred into a viable cell via the R-alkynyl ruthenium complexes and distributed in the cell nucleus.

## Claims

1. A ruthenium complex for nucleic acid sequence vector application, the ruthenium complex has the following general formula:




wherein:
L is an auxiliary ligand having a structural formula of:




R is independently selected from substituted alkyl, substituted phenyl, substituted pyridyl, substituted furyl, substituted thiazole and substituted pyrrole, wherein substituted group is selected from hydroxyl, nitro, halogen, amino, carboxy, cyano, mercapto, C3-C8 cycloalkyl, SO3H, C1-C6 alkyl, C2-C6 alkenyl, C2-C6 alkynyl, hydroxyl(C1-C6)alkyl, amino(C1-C6)alkyl, CO2R′, CONR′R′, COR′, SO2R′R′, (C1-C6)alkoxyl, (C1-C6)alkylsulphide, —N═NR′, NR′R′ or trifluoro(C1-C6)alkyl; wherein R′ is selected from H, C1-C6 alkyl or phenyl;
R1 is independently selected from hydrogen, hydroxyl, trimethylsilyl, C1-C6 alkyl or substituted C1-C6 alkyl, phenyl or substituted phenyl, pyridyl or substituted pyridyl, furyl or substituted furyl, pyrryl or substituted pyrryl, thiazolyl or substituted thiazolyl; wherein the position of R1 substituted ethynyl may be ortho-position, meta-position or para-position on the benzene ring; the number of substituted ethynyl is 1, 2 or more;
R2 is independently selected from methyl, methoxyl, nitro and halogen;
Y is an ion or acidic radical ion which makes the whole ruthenium(II) complex electrically neutral,
n is the number of ions or acidic radical ions which makes the whole ruthenium(II) complex electrically neutral;
the nucleic acid sequence has a length of at least 4 bp.

2. The ruthenium complex according to claim 1, characterized in that the ruthenium complex is selected from:

3. The ruthenium complex according to claim 1, characterized in that the ruthenium complex is a single chiral isomer thereof.

4. The ruthenium complex according to claim 1, characterized in that the length of the nucleic acid sequence is not longer than 3,000 bp.

5. The ruthenium complex according to claim 1, characterized in that the nucleic acid is a fluorophore-labeled nucleic acid.

6. The ruthenium complex according to claim 1, characterized in that the nucleic acid sequence is selected from c-myc promoter region DNA, C-kit promoter region DNA, bcl-2 promoter region DNA, miR-21, DNA of AS1411, siRNA, microRNA, aptamer and mRNA.

7. A fluorescent probe comprising:
a ruthenium coordination complex; and
a nucleic acid sequence, wherein the ruthenium complex is as claimed in claim 1.

8. The fluorescent probe according to claim 7, characterized in that the fluorescent probe is prepared by the following steps:
uniformly mixing a ruthenium complex with a nucleic acid solution to obtain a mixture;
then heating the mixture obtained to a temperature ranging from 70° C. to 100° C.;
maintaining the temperature for 30 seconds to 30 minutes;
cooling the mixture; and
removing free ruthenium complexes after cooling to form a ruthenium coordination complex-nucleic acid complex;
wherein the ruthenium complex has a structural formula according to claim 1 and the nucleic acid has a length that is not shorter than 4 bp.

9. The fluorescent probe according to claim 8, characterized in that the nucleic acid is a fluorophore-labeled nucleic acid.

10. The fluorescent probe according to claim 8, characterized in that the heating is performed by a microwave.

11. The ruthenium complex according to claim 2, characterized in that the ruthenium complex is a single chiral isomer thereof.

12. The ruthenium complex according to claim 4, characterized in that the nucleic acid is a fluorophore-labeled nucleic acid.

13. The fluorescent probe according to claim 7, characterized in that the fluorescent probe is prepared by the following steps:
uniformly mixing a ruthenium complex with a nucleic acid solution to obtain a mixture;
then heating the mixture obtained to a temperature ranging from 70° C. to 100° C.;
maintaining the temperature for 30 seconds to 30 minutes;
cooling the mixture; and
removing free ruthenium complexes after cooling to form a ruthenium coordination complex-nucleic acid complex;
wherein the ruthenium complex has a structural formula according to claim 2 and the nucleic acid has a length that is not shorter than 4 bp.

14. The fluorescent probe according to claim 7, characterized in that the fluorescent probe is prepared by the following steps:
uniformly mixing a ruthenium complex with a nucleic acid solution to obtain a mixture;
then heating the mixture obtained to a temperature ranging from 70° C. to 100° C.;
maintaining the temperature for 30 seconds to 30 minutes;
cooling the mixture; and
removing free ruthenium complexes after cooling to form a ruthenium coordination complex-nucleic acid complex;
wherein the ruthenium complex has a structural formula according to claim 3 and the nucleic acid has a length that is not shorter than 4 bp.