An Amphiphilic BODIPY-Porphyrin Conjugate: Intense Two-Photon Absorption and Rapid Cellular Uptake for Two-Photon-Induced Imaging and Photodynamic Therapy

Tao Zhang, Rongfeng Lan, Longlong Gong, Baoyan Wu, Yuzhi Wang, Daniel W J KWONG*, Rick W K WONG, Ka-Leung WONG, Da Xing

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalJournal articlepeer-review

17 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

The new amphiphilic BODPY-porphyrin conjugate BZnPP and its precursor BZnPH were synthesised, and their linear and two-photon photophysical properties, together with their cellular uptake and photo-cytotoxicity, were studied. This amphiphilic conjugate consists of a hydrophobic BODIPY moiety and a hydrophilic tetra(ethylene glycol) chain bridging a cationic triphenylphosphonium group to an amphiphilic porphyrin ZnP through acetylide linkers at its meso positions. A large two-photon absorption cross-section (σ=1725GM) and a high singlet oxygen quantum yield (0.52) were recorded. Intense linear- and two-photon-induced red emissions were also observed for both BZnPP and BZnPH. Further in vitro studies showed that BZnPP exhibited very efficient cellular uptake and strong photocytotoxic but weak dark cytotoxic properties towards human breast carcinoma MCF-7 cells. In summary, the two-photon-induced emission and the potent photo-cytotoxicity of BZnPP make it an efficacious dual-purpose tumour-imaging and photodynamic therapeutic agent in the tissue-transparent spectral windows.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)2357-2364
Number of pages8
JournalChemBioChem
Volume16
Issue number16
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 1 Nov 2015

Scopus Subject Areas

  • Biochemistry
  • Molecular Medicine
  • Molecular Biology
  • Organic Chemistry

User-Defined Keywords

  • amphiphiles
  • BODIPY
  • photodynamic therapy
  • porphyrinoids
  • two-photon absorption

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