Self-Assembled Novel BODIPY-Based Palladium Supramolecules and Their Cellular Localization

Area of Science:

• Supramolecular Chemistry
• Medicinal Chemistry
• Materials Science

Background:

• Boron dipyrromethane (BODIPY) ligands are known for their photophysical properties.
• Palladium-based supramolecular complexes have shown promise in various applications, including medicine.

Purpose of the Study:

• To synthesize and characterize novel palladium supramolecules with triangular/square architectures using BODIPY ligands.
• To evaluate the cytotoxicity of these new compounds against glioblastoma cells.
• To investigate the cellular localization and imaging capabilities of the fluorescent supramolecules.

Main Methods:

• Self-assembly synthesis of palladium-BODIPY supramolecules.
• Characterization using NMR (¹H, ³¹P), electrospray ionization mass spectrometry, and single-crystal X-ray diffraction.
• Cytotoxicity assays on glioblastoma and normal lung fibroblast cell lines.
• Confocal microscopy for intracellular visualization.

Main Results:

• Four new palladium supramolecules with defined architectures were successfully synthesized and characterized.
• The supramolecules exhibited significant cytotoxicity towards glioblastoma cells, surpassing that of cisplatin.
• The compounds demonstrated higher toxicity to cancer cells compared to normal lung fibroblasts.
• Intracellular localization in the cytoplasm and on the plasma membrane was observed due to BODIPY's green fluorescence.

Conclusions:

• Novel palladium-BODIPY supramolecules possess potent anti-glioblastoma activity.
• These compounds offer a promising platform for targeted cancer therapy and imaging.
• The observed fluorescence enables real-time monitoring of drug delivery and localization in cancer cells.