Synthesis, characterisation and biological properties of a silver helicate which displays enhanced activity towards methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA)

Abstract

Antimicrobial resistance is an ever growing concern and the development of novel treatment methods is urgently required. In this study a novel bis-bidentate ligand strand which forms a dinuclear double helicate in solution with silver cations, [Ag₂L₂]²⁺ demonstrated cytotoxicity against a range of cancer cell lines and antimicrobial activity against bacterial pathogens E. coli, P. aeruginosa and S. aureus (a methicillin resistant strain; MRSA), with the latter being at least 8 times more sensitive to the helicate complex compared to silver cations on their own.