The growing appearance of resistant microbial strains has promoted the development of viable alternatives for the eradication of infectious diseases. In this sense, photodynamic inactivation (PDI) of microorganisms has been proposed as useful therapy. Therefore, the development of new phototherapeutic agents and photoinactivation strategies are of great interest to maintain aseptic conditions in public health.

In this work, 5,10,15,20-tetrakis(pentafluorophenyl)porphyrin (TPPF₂₀) was synthesized from the condensation between pentafluorobenzaldehyde and pyrrole catalyzed by BF₃^.OEt₂ in dichloromethane. Subsequent oxidation reaction with 2,3-dichloro-5,6-dicyano-p-benzoquinone afforded TPPF₂₀ in 38% yield. This porphyrin is a versatile template to develop more elaborate photodynamic compounds. TPPF₂₀ can be modified by nucleophilic aromatic substitution (S_NAr) with the displacement of the four para-fluoro atoms. This porphyrin was metaled with Zn(II) acetate in DCM/methanol to produce the complex ZnTPPF₂₀ in 98% yield. After that, TPPF₂₀ and ZnTPPF₂₀ were reacted with N,N,N′,N′-tetrakis(3-aminopropyl)-1,4-butanediamine as the dendrimeric structure by S_NAr to obtain two polymers, PTPPF₁₆ and PZnTPPF₁₆, respectively. The reactions were carried out in N,N-dimethylformamide at room temperature for 44 h, followed by heating at 80 °C for 4 h. This approach produces the polymers in 100% conversion. The polymers were purified by precipitation in water and washing the solid with petroleum ether. The UV-visible absorption spectra of PTPPF₁₆ and PZnTPPF₁₆ showed the Soret and Q bands of both polymers red-shifted by about 15 nm compared to those of the corresponding monomers, TPPF₂₀ and ZnTPPF₂₀. Also, the polymers exhibited the two red emission bands, characteristic of porphyrins. Furthermore, these polymers were able to produce reactive oxygen species, such as singlet molecular oxygen and superoxide radical anion. Therefore, PTPPF₁₆ and PZnTPPF₁₆ are potential photodynamic materials to eliminate pathogens.