The simple inorganic platinum compound cis-diamminedichloroplatinum(II), also known as cisplatin, is one of the most important anticancer drug in clinical use. The discovery of its antitumoural activity by Barnett Rosenberg some 40 years ago opened a new area of anticancer research based on metal complexes.

In the Laboratory of Bioinorganic Chemistry, headed by Dr. Ang Wee Han, we are interested in taking the development of these metal complexes to a whole new level. Our research involves the study of the "metal" in pharmaceutical drugs for cancer therapy. Using rational drug design, we explore alternative strategies and analytical tools to develop viable chemotherapeutic agents based not only on platinum but also other metal centres.