Dicopper(II) adenine/phenanthroline complex (1) was synthesized.
The structure was determined by single crystal X-ray diffraction.
The complex 1 has remarkable IC50 values of 0.87 ± 0.06 μM (HeLa) and 0.44 ± 0.06 μM (Caco-2).
The Cu(II) complex interacts with calf thymus DNA via the intercalation mode.