Synthesis and characterization of a carboranyl-tetrabenzoporphyrin

An expeditious synthetic route to a carboranyl-substituted tetrabenzoporphyrin is reported. The absorption and emission spectra of water-soluble tetrabenzoporphyrin 4 are distinct from those of a known carboranylporphyrin (5). Both tetrabenzoporphyrin 4 and porphyrin 5 were found to be non-toxic toward V79 hamster lung fibroblast cells at 300 μM, using an MTT assay. The X-ray structure of a Cu(II)–carboranyl-tetrabenzoporphyrin is presented and discussed.