Dithiocarbazate–Zn(ii) complexes for photodynamic therapy and chemotherapy against lung cancer

Combining photodynamic therapy with chemotherapy is a promising strategy for treating tumors. Herein, a series of new dithiocarbazate–Zn(II) complexes, including [ZnII(L1)2] Zn1, [ZnII(L2)2] Zn2, [ZnII(L3)2] Zn3, and [ZnII(L4)2] Zn4, have been synthesized for chemotherapy and photodynamic therapy of lung cancer. These complexes can be used for live-cell fluorescence-based imaging, are photostable, and exhibit hemolysis comparable to cisplatin. Among them, complex Zn3 shows good chemotherapeutic ability, and its chemotherapeutic mechanism relies on multiple pathways. At the same time, complex Zn3 generates superoxide anion radicals (˙O2−) under light irradiation, leading to cancer cell death through photodynamic therapy. Its remarkable anticancer effect is achieved through multimodal photodynamic therapy/chemotherapy. This study paves the way for the use of novel Zn(II) complexes as anticancer agents, providing new strategies for multimodal cancer therapy.