Two new amidic macrocycles, L1 and L2 were synthesized by the condensation reaction of 4-chloro- andpyridine-2,6-dicarbonylchloride with 1,2-bis(2-aminoethoxy)ethane and 1-(2-aminoethyl)piperazine,respectively. The compounds have been fully identified by single-crystal X-ray diffraction. These sub-stances were found to exhibit fluorescence property and remarkable solvatofluorochromism in variousorganic solvents (DkEM= 139 and 141 nm for L1 and L2, respectively). Also, the compounds were testedas fluorescent sensor toward a number of metals and noticeable fluorescence was indicated for them inthe presence of Pb2+. Subsequent experiments evaluated the ability of the compounds to detect Pb2+inPC12 (adrenal pheochromocytoma) cells. The cytotoxicity of the compounds was measured via MTT(3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyl-2H-tetrazolium bromide) method. Cell uptake and biosens-ing capability were evaluated by treating PC12 cells with mentioned compounds and after that withlead(II) nitrate. Obtained results of MTT experiment and fluorescent images revealed that both com-pounds at about 0.01lM possess zero cytotoxicity and have acceptable capability for detecting Pb2+intested cells.
