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Updated: Jan 24, 2026

Photodynamic Therapy with Blended Conducting Polymer/Fullerene Nanoparticle Photosensitizers
Published on: October 28, 2015
Highly Charged Ruthenium(II) Polypyridyl Complexes as Effective Photosensitizer in Photodynamic Therapy
Luca Conti1, Andrea Bencini1, Camilla Ferrante2
1Department of Chemistry 'Ugo Schiff', University of Florence, Via della Lastruccia 3, 50019, Sesto Fiorentino (FI), Italy.
Abstract:
A comparative study between two novel, highly water soluble, ruthenium(II) polypyridyl complexes, [Ru(phen)2 L'] and [Ru(phen)2 Cu(II)L'] (L and L-CuII ), containing the polyaazamacrocyclic unit 4,4'-(2,5,8,11,14-pentaaza[15])-2,2'-bipyridilophane (L'), is herein reported. L and L-CuII interact with calf-thymus DNA and efficiently cleave DNA plasmid when light-activated. They also possess great penetration abilities and photo-induced biological activities, evaluated on an A375 human melanoma cell line, with L-CuII being the most effective. Our study highlights the key role of the Fenton active CuII center within the macrocycle framework, that would play a synergistic role with light activation in the formation of cytotoxic ROS species. Based on these results, an optimal design of RuII polypyridyl systems featuring specific CuII -chelating polyamine units could represent a suitable strategy for the development of novel and effective photosensitizers in photodynamic therapy.
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