Studies of rhenium carboxylates as antitumor agents. Part II. Antitumor studies of bis (mu-propionato) diaquotetrabromodirhenium (III) in tumor-bearing mice.

The neutral, dimeric complexes of rhenium, bis (mu-carboxalato)-diaquotetrahalodirhenium (III) (carboxalato = acetato, propionato, or butyrato and halo = chloro or bromo), were synthesized and survival studies were done on mice bearing P-388 leukemia or B-16 melanoma. The complex bis (mu-propionato) diaquotetrabromodirhenium (III) proved to be the most effective in increasing the life span of the mice. The complex showed some activity against B-16, but virtually none against P-388. The complexes are all quite non-toxic.