Two new dirhodium(II) complexes possessing the intercalating dppz ligand (dppz = dipyrido[3,2-a:2',3'-c]phenazine), cis-[Rh(2)(mu-O(2)CCH(3))(2)(dppz)(eta(1)-O(2)CCH(3))(CH(3)OH)](+) (1) and cis-[Rh(2)(mu-O(2)CCH(3))(2)(dppz)(2)](2+) (2), were synthesized and characterized as potential agents for photochemotherapy. Various techniques show that 1 binds to DNA through intercalation, although some aggregation of the complex on the DNA surface is also present. In contrast, 2 does not intercalate between the DNA bases; however, strong hypochromic behavior is observed in the presence of DNA, which can be attributed to intermolecular pi-stacking of 2 enhanced by the polyanion. The apparent DNA binding constants determined using optical titrations are compared to those from dialysis experiments. Both complexes photocleave pUC18 plasmid in vitro under irradiation with visible light (lambda(irr) >or= 395 nm, 15 min), resulting in the nicked, circular form. Greater photocleavage is observed for 1 relative to 2, which may be due to the ability of 1 to intercalate between the DNA bases. The cytotoxicity toward human skin cells (Hs-27) measured as the concentration at which 50% cell death is recorded, LC(50), was found to be 135 +/- 8 microM for 2 in the dark (30 min), which is significantly lower than those of 1 (LC(50) = 27 +/- 2 microM) and Rh(2)(O(2)CCH(3))(4) (LC(50) = 15 +/- 2 microM). Irradiation of cell cultures containing 1 and Rh(2)(O(2)CCH(3))(4) with visible light (400-700 nm, 30 min) has little effect on their cytotoxicity, with LC(50) values of 21 +/- 3 and 13 +/- 2 microM, respectively. Interestingly, a 3.4-fold increase in the toxicity of 2 is observed when the cell cultures are irradiated (400-700 nm, 30 min), resulting in LC(50) = 39 +/- 1 microM. The greater toxicity of 1 compared to 2 in the dark may be related to the ability of the former compound to intercalate between the DNA bases. The lower cytotoxicity of 2, together with its significantly greater photocytotoxicity, makes this complex a potential agent for photodynamic therapy (PDT). These results suggest that intercalation or strong DNA binding may not be a desirable property of a potential PDT agent.

The complex cis-[Rh2(mu-O2CCH3)2(CH3CN)6]2+ (1) exchanges the two axial CH3CN ligands for solvent molecules in water to yield cis-[Rh2(mu-O2CCH3)2(CH3CN)4(H2O)2]2+ (2). Photolysis of 2 in H2O results in the photoaquation of two equatorial acetonitrile ligands to yield [Rh2(mu-O2CCH3)2(CH3CN)2(H2O)4]2+ (3), which is able to covalently bind to free 2,2'-bipyridine (bpy) and 9-ethylguanine in solution, as well as double-stranded DNA (lambdairr >/= 455 nm). Complex 2 exhibits 20-fold lower cytotoxicity towards human skin cells than hematoporphyrin in the dark, and its toxicity increases by a factor of 34 when irradiated with visible light (400-700 nm, 30 min). This increase in cytotoxicity by 2 upon irradiation is approximately 7 times greater than that measured for hematoporphyrin. These properties make 2 a promising photo-cisplatin analog and a potential agent for photodynamic therapy. To our knowledge, 2 is the first metal-metal bonded complex to bind to DNA upon irradiation with visible light.

In the series Rh2(O2CR)4 (R=CH3, 1; R=CF3, 2), [Rh2(O2CR)2(phen)2]2+ (R=CH3, 3; R=CF3, 4), and [Rh2(O2CR)2(dppz)2]2+ (R=CH3, 5; R=CF3, 6), 2, 4, and 6 are twice as cytotoxic as 1, 3, and 5, respectively. The substitution reactions of 2 with 9-ethylguanine at various temperatures take place at faster rates than those of 1, and the activation energy Ea(1)=69+/-4 kJ/mol is twice Ea(2)=35+/-2 kJ/mol. The higher cytotoxicities of [Rh2(micro-O2CCH3)2(eta1-O2CCH3)L(MeOH)]+ (L=dppz, 7; L=dppn, 8) relative to [Rh2(micro-O2CCH3)2(bpy)L]2+ (L=dppz, 10; L=dppn, 11) are attributed to the labile equatorial groups in 7 and 8 not present in 10 and 11. The toxicities of complexes 1-8 are not related to their charge or the ease by which they transverse the cellular membrane but to the lability of the ligands on the dirhodium core.