Photophysical properties, singlet oxygen generation and DNA binding affinity of Tris(4-pyridyl)corrole and its phosphorous, gallium and tin complexes.

• The excited-state dynamics of a series of pyridyl corroles were reported. • A very fast ISC rate in tin corrole yielded a high triplet population. • The photostability and singlet oxygen generation were evaluated. • The interaction of corroles with ct-DNA was investigated. The photophysical properties of a series of pyridyl corroles were reported. Their excited-state dynamics were investigated by femtosecond transient absorption, which revealed a very fast intersystem crossing in the tin complex (3.9 × 109 s−1) with a high triplet yield of 0.91. An accelerated vibrational cooling of free-base corrole in DMF was observed due to deprotonation. The ability of these corroles to generate singlet oxygen was also quantitatively measured, which demonstrated the tin complex as a promising photosensitizer. The photo-induced reactive oxygen species (ROS) were detected by EPR. Additionally, the DNA binding affinity of these corroles was evaluated to inspect their potential biological use. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]