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The French Embassy Awards are presented annually to young Czech researchers for the quality of their research work carried out as part of their studies. The awards are given in the following categories according to academic disciplines: the Jean-Marie Lehn Prize for Chemistry, the Sanofi Prize for Pharmacy, the Albert Schweitzer Prize for Medicine, the Joseph Fourier Prize for Computer Science, the Jacques Derrida Prize for Social and Human Sciences, and the Becquerel Prize in the Nuclear Field. The winners are selected by experts composed of both Czech and also French specialists. The jury evaluates not only the quality of the scientific research but also the candidates’ presentation skills, ability to defend their results, and their overall profile as well as scientific background. The final presentations of the selected candidates from across the Czech Republic took place on 21. 5. 2025, at the Faculty of Chemical Technology of the University of Pardubice, in front of the expert committee. The awarding ceremony was held on 26. 6. 2025, at the French Embassy in Prague. The ceremony was chaired by the French Ambassador to the Czech Republic and Jean-Marie Lehn, Nobel Prize laureate in Chemistry (1987) who is also the initiator of the event.

This year’s laureate of the Special Prize for Chemistry; attributed by the Czech Chemical Society, as part of the Jean-Marie Lehn Prize is our doctoral student Ms. Marie Pražáková who presented her research on Manganese(II) complexes with potential applications in medicine.  Her work is therefore considered as one of the finest in the Czech Republic in the field of chemistry. 

Fotografie: Eva Kořínková

This work focuses on the study of cytotoxicity and DNA and protein binding of the cis-ammin-diiodido(2-methylpyridine)platinum(II) complex (I-picoplatin), which is the iodido analog of the chlorido complex known as picoplatin. I-picoplatin (IC₅₀ = 3.7–12.4 μM) is more effective than picoplatin (IC₅₀ = 11.8–22.6 μM) in the human cancer cell lines used, shows a greater ability to overcome cisplatin resistance, and induces different cell cycle changes compared to picoplatin and cisplatin. The binding of the complex to DNA was investigated, for example, using circular dichroism. The reactivity with lysozyme (HEWL), RNase A, and human serum albumin (HSA) was studied by X-ray diffraction and mass spectrometry. It was shown that I-picoplatin binds to DNA and retains the coordinated 2-methylpyridine and at least one iodido ligand when bound to proteins – these fragments, including isomerized I-picoplatin, coordinate His and Met residues on the proteins.

This work focuses on the synthesis of novel mono-substituted ligands derived from the 15-pyN₃O₂ macrocycle, bearing either a 2-pyridylmethyl (L2) or a 2-benzimidazoylmethyl (L3) pendant arm. The corresponding manganese(II) complexes were characterized with respect to their potential use as contrast agents in Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI). X-ray crystallography confirmed a coordination number of 7, with one water molecule occupying the seventh coordination site in aqueous solution.

Solution studies (potentiometry, relaxometry, cyclic voltammetry, ¹⁷O NMR, and ¹H NMRD profiles) revealed good thermodynamic stability as well as stability of the +II oxidation state, and reasonable MRI efficiency which is in good correspondence to the presence of one coordinated water molecule. The kinetic inertness of MnL2 and MnL3 remain relatively low, limiting further application, but an improved dissociation half-lives were observed, compared to the Mn-15pyN₃O₂ complex and the previously studied MnL1 (Pražáková M. et al., Dalton Trans., 2023), especially for MnL2 (t₁/₂ = 10.1 min).

This paper focuses on coordination compounds of Cu(I) with tetrazine-based ligands as potential photosensitizers. Four new compounds have been prepared, two dinuclear and two mononuclear, with the latter being the first reported case of this class of coordination compounds. Electronic structures of the prepared compounds were characterized by various methods as well as their stability in solution. Low HOMO-LUMO gap in the prepared Cu(I) complexes leads to low emissive properties, however theoretical calculations have lit a way to new possibilities, giving motivation to continue the research in this field.

This review provides the reader with an overview of the anticancer active Ir(III) cyclopentadienyl coordination compounds and the diverse chemical, biochemical and biological methods used in their research and development. Structure-activity relationships (SAR) and mechanisms of action (MoA) are discussed with respect to anticancer activity and in comparison to their structural Ru(II), Rh(III) and Os(II) analogues. Considerable attention is paid to the discussion of in vivo anticancer activity and related aspects such as drug delivery strategies, multicomponent compounds or photodynamic therapy.