A series of pegylated cis-A2B2- or A3B-type
ZnPcs, substituted on the α-positions with tri(
ethylene glycol) and
hydroxyl groups, were synthesized from a new bis-phthalonitrile. A clamshell-type bis-
phthalocyanine was also obtained as a byproduct. The
hydroxyl group of one ZnPc was alkylated with 3-dimethylaminopropyl
chloride to afford a pegylated ZnPc functionalized with an
amine group. All mononuclear
ZnPcs were soluble in polar organic
solvents, showed intense Q absorptions in DMF, and had fluorescence quantum yields in the range 0.10-0.23. The clamshell-type bis-
phthalocyanine adopts mainly open shell conformations in DMF, and closed clamshell conformations in
chloroform. All
ZnPcs were highly phototoxic to human
carcinoma HEp2 cells, particularly the amino-ZnPc mainly protonated under physiological conditions, which showed the highest
phototoxicity (IC50 = 0.5 μM at 1.5 J/cm2) and dark cytotoxicity (IC50 = 22 μM), in part due to its high cellular uptake. The
ZnPcs localized in multiple organelles, including mitochondria, lysosomes, Golgi and ER.