Enhanced cancer therapy by the marriage of metabolic alteration and mitochondrial-targeted photodynamic therapy using cyclometalated Ir(iii) complexes.

Herein we present a series of DCA-Ir(iii) co-drug complexes that preferentially accumulate in mitochondria and selectively cause cancer cell metabolic alterations and were found to act in synergy by sensitizing cancer cells for PDT to achieve cancer-specific enhanced two-photon PDT in the hypoxic environment of multicellular tumor spheroids.