Hook, Line, and Sinker! Spectroscopic Studies of Bi-Modular Mono- and Bis-1,8-naphthalimide-Ru(bpy)(3)-conjugates as DNA “Light Switches”

[Image: see text] Bi-chromophoric ruthenium polypyridyl complexes comprising one or two nitro-1,8-naphthalimide groups are shown to be effective DNA binders with off–on light switching properties. The binding to DNA was investigated using a combination of studies such as UV–visible absorption and emission titrations, thermal denaturation, and circular dichroism spectroscopy. The DNA affinity was shown to be sensitive to both the linker length and the number of naphthalimides (one vs two) contained in these systems and binding constants ranging from 10(6) to 10(7) M(–1) for salmon testes DNA. The strong DNA binding is attributed to the combination of naphthalimide intercalation and the electrostatic interaction of the ruthenium complex. Large emission enhancements from the metal to ligand charge transfer (MLCT) emission arising from the metal complex were observed upon DNA binding, which was attributed to the interruption of intramolecular electron transfer quenching processes. Moving the nitro substitution from the 4-position to the 3-position is found to result in modification of the DNA binding and the resulting optical properties. The off–on light switch phenomena reported demonstrate the potential of these complexes to act as DNA probes.