Combination anticancer therapy activity studies for the complex of hypocrellin A and gallium ion

• The complex of two anticancer drugs, hypocrellin A (HA) and Ga(NO3)3, is prepared.
• The complex can be effectively taken up by cancer cells.
• Anticancer results show the combined effect of both HA and Ga(NO3)3 for the complex.

Combining different treatment modalities is widely employed in oncology to improve the therapeutic response. In this work, we develop a multifunctional complex for co-delivery of the anticancer drug Ga(NO3)3 and the photosensitizer hypocrellin A (HA) as potential dual delivery system for the combination of chemotherapy and photodynamic therapy (PDT). Ga(NO3)3 is used in cancer treatment and is synergistic with other anticancer drugs. Hypocrellin A is a natural photosensitizer, which has been extensively and intensively studied as a promising PDT agent. HA can chelate with gallium ion to form a 1:1 complex. Irradiation of the complex with light of suitable wavelength results in efficient generation of singlet oxygen (1O2). In vitro studies have demonstrated the active uptake of the complex into the cytosol of tumor cells. Viability of cells treated with the complex decreased as compared to free HA or Ga(NO3)3, thus showing a combined effect of both HA and Ga(NO3)3.