Members of a family of Ru(II)-appended pyrenylethynylene dyads were synthesized, characterized according to their photophysical and photobiological properties, and evaluated for their collective potential as photosensitizers for metal-organic photodynamic therapy. The dyads in this series possess lowest-lying (3)IL-based excited states with lifetimes that can be tuned from 22 to 270 μs in fluid solution and from 44 to 3440 μs in glass at 77 K. To our knowledge, these excited-state lifetimes are the longest reported for Ru(II)-based dyads containing only one organic chromophore and lacking terminal diimine groups. These excited states proved to be extremely sensitive to trace amounts of oxygen, owing to their long lifetimes and very low radiative rates. Herein, we demonstrate that (3)IL states of this nature are potent photodynamic agents, exhibiting the largest photocytotoxicity indices reported to date with nanomolar light cytotoxicities at very short drug-to-light intervals. Importantly, these new agents are robust enough to maintain submicromolar PDT in pigmented metastatic melanoma cells, where the presence of melanin in combination with low oxygen tension is known to compromise PDT. This activity underscores the potential of metal-organic PDT as an alternate treatment strategy for challenging environments such as malignant melanoma.

Here we show the design, preparation, and characterization of a dormant singlet oxygen ((1)O2) photosensitizer that is activated upon its reaction with reactive oxygen species (ROS), including (1)O2 itself, in what constitutes an autocatalytic process. The compound is based on a two segment photosensitizer-trap molecule where the photosensitizer segment consists of a Br-substituted boron-dipyrromethene (BODIPY) dye. The trap segment consists of the chromanol ring of α-tocopherol, the most potent naturally occurring lipid soluble antioxidant. Time-resolved absorption, fluorescence, and (1)O2 phosphorescence studies together with fluorescence and (1)O2 phosphorescence emission quantum yields collected on Br2B-PMHC and related bromo and iodo-substituted BODIPY dyes show that the trap segment provides a total of three layers of intramolecular suppression of (1)O2 production. Oxidation of the trap segment with ROS restores the sensitizing properties of the photosensitizer segment resulting in ∼40-fold enhancement in (1)O2 production. The juxtaposed antioxidant (chromanol) and prooxidant (Br-BODIPY) antagonistic chemical activities of the two-segment compound enable the autocatalytic, and in general ROS-mediated, activation of (1)O2 sensitization providing a chemical cue for the spatiotemporal control of (1)O2.The usefulness of this approach to selectively photoactivate the production of singlet oxygen in ROS stressed vs regular cells was successfully tested via the photodynamic inactivation of a ROS stressed Gram negative Escherichia coli strain.

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Several mononuclear Ru(II) dyads possessing 1,10-phenanthroline-appended pyrenylethynylene ligands were synthesized, characterized, and evaluated for their potential in photobiological applications such as photodynamic therapy (PDT). These complexes interact with DNA via intercalation and photocleave DNA in vitro at submicromolar concentrations when irradiated with visible light (λ irr g 400 nm). Such properties are remarkably sensitive to the position of the ethynylpyrenyl substituent on the 1,10-phenanthroline ring, with 3-substitution showing the strongest binding under all conditions and causing the most deleterious DNA damage. Both dyads photocleave DNA under hypoxic conditions, and this photoactivity translates well to cytotoxicity and photocytotoxicity models using human leukemia cells, where the 5-and 3-substituted dyads show photocytotoxicity at 5-10 μM and 10-20 μM, respectively, with minimal, or essentially no, dark toxicity at these concentrations. This lack of dark cytotoxicity at concentrations where significant photoactivity is observed emphasizes that agents with strong intercalating units, previously thought to be too toxic for phototherapeutic applications, should not be excluded from the arsenal of potential photochemotherapeutic agents under investigation.

Our understanding of lipid peroxidation in biology and medicine is rapidly evolving, as it is increasingly implicated in various diseases but also recognized as a key part of normal cell function, signaling, and death (ferroptosis). Not surprisingly, the root and consequences of lipid peroxidation have garnered increasing attention from multiple disciplines in recent years. Here we “connect the dots” between the fundamental chemistry underpinning the cascade reactions of lipid peroxidation (enzymatic or free radical), the reactive nature of the products formed (lipid-derived electrophiles), and the biological targets and mechanisms associated with these products that culminate in cellular responses. We additionally bring light to the use of highly sensitive, fluorescence-based methodologies. Stemming from the foundational concepts in chemistry and biology, these methodologies enable visualizing and quantifying each reaction in the cascade in a cellular and ultimately tissue context, toward deciphering the connections between the chemistry and physiology of lipid peroxidation. The review offers a platform in which the chemistry and biomedical research communities can access a comprehensive summary of fundamental concepts regarding lipid peroxidation, experimental tools for the study of such processes, as well as the recent discoveries by leading investigators with an emphasis on significant open questions.