A supramolecular photosensitizer derived from an Arene-Ru(II) complex self-assembly for NIR activated photodynamic and photothermal therapy

Abstract Effective photosensitizers are of particular importance for the widespread clinical utilization of phototherapy. However, conventional photosensitizers are usually plagued by short-wavelength absorption, inadequate photostability, low reactive oxygen species (ROS) quantum yields, and aggregation-caused ROS quenching. Here, we report a near-infrared (NIR)-supramolecular photosensitizer (RuDA) via self-assembly of an organometallic Ru(II)-arene complex in aqueous solution. RuDA can generate singlet oxygen ( 1 O 2 ) only in aggregate state, showing distinct aggregation-induced 1 O 2 generation behavior due to the greatly increased singlet-triplet intersystem crossing process. Upon 808 nm laser irradiation, RuDA with excellent photostability displays efficient 1 O 2 and heat generation in a 1 O 2 quantum yield of 16.4% (FDA-approved indocyanine green: Φ Δ = 0.2%) together with…