Triphenylamine-Appended Half-Sandwich Iridium(III) Complexes and Their Biological Applications.

Organometallic half-sandwich Ir complexes of the type [(η -Cp )Ir(N^N)Cl]PF (Cp : Cp* or its phenyl Cp or biphenyl Cp derivatives; N^N: triphenylamine (TPA)-substituted bipyridyl ligand groups) were synthesized and characterized. The complexes showed excellent bovine serum albumin (BSA) and DNA binding properties and were able to oxidize NADH to NAD (NAD=nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide) efficiently. The complexes induced apoptosis effectively and led to the emergence of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in cells.