The Strange Case: The Unsymmetric Cisplatin-Based Pt(IV) Prodrug [Pt(CH₃COO)Cl₂(NH₃)₂(OH)] Exhibits Higher Cytotoxic Activity with respect to Its Symmetric Congeners due to Carrier-Mediated Cellular Uptake

Figure 4

The caspase 3/7 activity assay. A2780 cells were treated with cisplatin and 1–3 at equimolar concentrations (10 μM) for 24 h CT. The Ac-DEVD-AFC fluorogenic substrate of caspase 3/7 was added to treated cells to highlight caspase activity (gray bars). Parallelly, the Ac-DEVD-CHO inhibitor was also added to a second set of treated cells to verify the specific activity (white bars, visible only for cisplatin). Data are the mean ± SD of three independent replicates and were compared using one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) with the Tukey post-hoc test. Statistical analysis (cisplatin, 1–3vs. NT): no indication = not significant,  < 0.001.