A
gallium(III)-substituted amphiphilic
corrole noncovalently associated with a targeting
protein was previously found by us to confer promising cytotoxic and antitumor activities against a
breast cancer cell line and a mouse xenograft
breast cancer model. To further explore potential anticancer applications, the
cytostatic and cytotoxic properties of six nontargeted metallocorroles were evaluated against seven human
cancer cell lines. Results indicated that toxicity toward human
cancer cells depended on the
metal ion as well as
corrole functional group substitution. Ga(III)-substituted metallocorrole 1-Ga inhibited proliferation of breast (MDA-MB-231),
melanoma (SK-MEL-28), and ovarian (OVCAR-3)
cancer cells primarily by arrest of DNA replication, whereas 2-Mn displayed both
cytostatic and cytotoxic properties. Confocal microscopy revealed extensive uptake of 1-Ga into the cytoplasm of
melanoma and
ovarian cancer cells, while
prostate cancer cells (DU-145) displayed extensive nuclear localization. The localization of 1-Ga to the nucleus in DU-145 cells was exploited to achieve a 3-fold enhancement in the IC(50) of
doxorubicin upon coadministration. Time-course studies showed that over 90% of
melanoma cells incubated with 30 μM 1-Ga internalized metallocorrole after 15 min. Cellular uptake of 1-Ga and 1-Al was fastest and most efficient in
melanoma, followed by prostate and
ovarian cancer cells. Cell cycle analyses revealed that bis-sulfonated corroles containing Al(III), Ga(III), and Mn(III) induced late M phase arrest in several different
cancer cell lines, a feature that could be developed for potential therapeutic benefit.