Biography

Swamy received his Ph.D from Tulane University, New Orleans, LA, followed with a postdoctoral stint at The University of Texas at Austin. Before moving to Wright State he worked at St. Bonaventure University as an Assistant Professor. His research interests lie in the interface between organometallic chemistry, catalysis, material sciences and biology. In his free time, he enjoys spending time with his family, biking, running, hiking, and being outdoors.

Education History

Master of Science – Pondicherry University

Doctorate of Philosophy in Chemistry – Tulane University

Post Doctoral Research Associate – Department of Chemistry, The University of Texas Austin

Current Reserch Interests/Projects

Our research interests lie in the interface between organometallic chemistry, materials sciences, and biology. Our studies involve the synthesis of several organometallic complexes/polymers that posses interesting catalytic, photophysical and anti-cancer properties.

1) Cancer Therapeutic Agents

Our lab's drug discovery project aims to find safe, effective, and less detrimental cancer therapeutic agents. Our research involves the design, synthesis, and biological evaluation of various redox-active gold(I)-NHC complexes containing Ferrocene and Quinone moieties. Recently, we explored first-generation redox-active gold(I)-NHC antitumor agents. Currently, we are exploring its dose-dependent toxicity studies in in vivo models. Efforts are underway to study the therapeutic value of these metal complexes in tumor xenograft models.

2) Functional Hybrid Materials

The project's primary objective is synthesizing tetrathiafulvalene fused N-heterocyclic carbenes as tunable ligands for the construction of organometallic polymers. The redox and photophysical properties of these molecules create a unique opportunity for various applications. The first step is successfully synthesizing tunable ligands, which will then be used to construct organometallic polymers. Currently, we are exploring strategies for building organometallic polymers via a modular approach. Several small synthons have been developed as a proof of principle, and the synthesis of tetrathiafulvalene fused N-heterocyclic carbene polymers is underway.

3) Precision Cyclic Polyesters for Potential Applications in Biomedical and Material Sciences

N-heterocyclic carbene-catalyzed zwitterionic polymerization for preparing cyclic polyesters is promising; they deliver more control over molecular weight distributions. Based on a new principle, an integrated electrochemical approach coupled with zwitterionic polymerizations is being developed to control the ring size of cyclic polyesters. These precision polyesters are highly sought after for their potential medical and material applications.

Contact:

Department of Chemistry, 408 Oelman Hall

Wright State University

3640 Colonel Glenn Hwy., Dayton, OH, 45435

kuppuswamy.arumugam@wright.edu

T:937-775-4661; F:937-775-2717

Selected Publications:

1. (R) [Di-μ-chloro-bis(1-benzyl-3-(2,4,6-trimethylphenyl)imidazol-2-ylidene)silver(I)]chloride, Malek, K., and Arumugam, K.,* P. IUCrData (In press)
2. (R) Structural and Electrochemical Insights into Five Coordinate Cobalt bis(dithiolene) N-heterocyclic carbene Complexes, Selvakumar, J., Sampath, K., Leedy, C. L., Raska, L., and Arumugam, K.,* Inorg. Chim. Acta, 2024, 572, 122252.
3. (R) Bis[1,3-bis­(2,4,6-tri­methyl­phen­yl)imidazolium] bis­(1,2-di­phenyl­ethene-1,2-di­thiolato-bis­[(cis-1,2-di­phenyl­ethene-1,2-di­thiolato)iron(III)] di­methyl­formamide disolvate, Selvakumar, J., Arumugam, K.,* IUCrData, 9, (1), 2024, x231083.
4. (R) A new ferrocene derivative blocks KRAS localization and function by oxidative modification at His95. Rehl, K. M., Selvakumar, J., Hoang, D., Arumugam, A., Gorfe, A., Cho K. J.,* Life Sci. Alliance, 6, (11), 2023. DOI: 10.26508/lsa.202302094.
5. (R) Detailed Structural and Spectroscopic Elucidation of Ferrocenium Coupled N-heterocyclic Carbene Gold(I) Complexes Reinhard, G., Selvakumar, J., Prybil, Arambula, J. F., and Arumugam, K.*, Dalton. trans., 2022, 51, 1533-1541.
6. 2) Zn Coordination and the Nature of the Halide Ancillary Ligand Dramatically Influences the Photophysical Properties of 2,3-di(pyridin-2-yl)benzo[g]quinoxaline, Lauren Loftus, Emma C. Olsen, David J. Stewart, Alexis T. Phillips, Arumugam, K., Albert Fratini, Scott T. Iacono, Thomas M. Cooper, Joy E. Haley, and Tod A. Grusenmeyer, Inorg. Chem., 2021, 60, 13177-13192.
7. 3)  An Electrochemically Controlled Release of N-heterocyclic carbene Using Iron Bis(dithiolene) N-heterocyclic Carbene Adducts, Selvakumar, J., Simpson, S. M., Zurek, E., and Arumugam, K.* Inorg. Chem. Front., 2021, 8, 59-71.
8. 4) Rationally Designed Redox-Active Au (I) N-Heterocyclic Carbene: An Immunogenic Cell Death Inducer S Sen, S Hufnagel, EY Maier, I Aguilar, J Selvakumar, JE DeVore,  VM Lynch, Arumugam, K.,*, Z Cui, JL Sessler, J  F Arambula, J. Am Chem. Soc., 2020, 142 (49), 20536-20541.
9. 5) Expanding the biological utility of bis-NHC gold(I) complexes through post synthetic carbamate conjugation, Sajal, S., Li, Y., Lynch, V., Arumugam^, K., Sessler, J. L., and Arambula J. F., Chem. Comm., 2019, 55, 10627-10630
10. 6) Dual Targeting of the Cancer Antioxidant Network with Naphthoquinone Fused Gold(I) N-heterocyclic Carbene Complexes” McCal R., Miles M., Kocerha, J., Burney, B., Patel, Z., Sidoran, K. J., Grossie, D. A., Sessler, J. L., Arumugam, K.,* and Arambula J. F.,* Chem. Sci., 2017, 8, 5918-5929. (Hot article of the month and featured as inside cover art)
11. 7) Targeting Antioxidant Pathways with Ferrocenylated N-Heterocyclic Carbene Supported Gold(I) Complexes in A549 Lung Cancer Cells, Arambula, J.; McCall, R., Sidoran, K., Bielawski, C. W.; Sessler, J., Arumugam., K.* Chem. Sci., 2016, 7, 1245-1256