Image-guided photodynamic therapy (PDT) has received growing attention due to its non-invasiveness and precise controllability. However, the PDT efficiency of most photosensitizers are decreased in living system due to the aggregation-caused singlet oxygen (1 O2 ) generation decreasing. Herein, we present an Iridium (III) pyridylpyrrole complex (Ir-1) featuring of aggregation-induced emission (AIE) and 1 O2 generation characteristics for image-guided PDT of cancer. Ir-1 aqueous solution exhibits bright red phosphorescence peaked at 630 nm, large Stokes shift of 227 nm, and good 1 O2 generation ability. The 1 O2 generating rate of Ir-1 in EtOH/water mixture solution is 2.3 times higher than that of Rose Bengal. In vitro experimental results revealed that Ir-1 has better biocompatibility and higher phototoxicity compared with clinically used photosensitizers (Rose Bengal and Ce6), suggesting that Ir-1 can serve as a photosensitizer for image-guided PDT of cancer.
Keywords: aggregation-induced emission; iridium (III) pyridylpyrrole complex; photodynamic therapy.
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