Biological activity and photocatalytic properties of a naphthyl-imidazo phenanthroline (HNAIP) ligand and its [Ir(ppy)(HNAIP)]Cl and [Rh(ppy)(HNAIP)]Cl complexes.

The synthesized 2-(hydroxy-1-naphtyl)imidazo-[4,5-f][1,10]phenanthroline (HNAIP) ligand and its new iridium ([Ir(ppy)(HNAIP)]Cl) and rhodium ([Rh(ppy)(HNAIP)]Cl) complexes, being ppy = 2-phenylpiridinate, show cytotoxic effects in SW480 (colon adenocarcinoma) and A549 (epithelial lung adenocarcinoma) cells. They all are cytotoxic in the tested cell lines. HNAIP and [Rh(ppy)(HNAIP)] are the most cytotoxic, whereas [Ir(ppy)(HNAIP)] displays negligible cytotoxicity towards A549 cells and moderate activity towards SW480.