Synthesis, Characterization, and Anticancer Activity of a Series of Ketone‑N4‑Substituted Thiosemicarbazones and Their Ruthenium(II) Arene Complexes

A series of ketone-N4-substituted thiosemicarbazone (TSC) compounds (L1–L9) and their corresponding [(η6-p-cymene)­RuII(TSC)­Cl]+/0 complexes (1–9) were synthesized and characterized by NMR, IR, elemental analysis, and HR-ESI-mass spectrometry. The molecular structures of L4, L9, 1–6, and 9 were determined by single-crystal X-ray diffraction analysis. The compounds were further evaluated for their in vitro antiproliferative activities against the SGC-7901 human gastric cancer, BEL-7404 human liver cancer, and HEK-293T noncancerous cell lines. Furthermore, the interactions of the compounds with DNA were followed by electrophoretic mobility spectrometry studies.