The luminescent octahedral molybdenum, tungsten, and rhenium cluster complexes have attracted a broad interest in the past decades for the design of photofunctional materials. These complexes, with the general formula [{M₆Lⁱ₈}L^a₆]ⁿ, display red phosphorescence with high quantum yields, quenching of their emission by oxygen, and robust production of singlet oxygen, O₂(¹Δ_g). In addition, the wide range of inner (Lⁱ) and apical (L^a) ligands allows for a fine tuning of their physico-chemical, photophysical, and biological properties and for additional functionalization with regards to targeted applications. In this review, we summarize the recent developments towards the use of these complexes for biological applications such as photodynamic therapy, computed tomography, or photoinactivation of bacteria. The synthetic methods and properties of these complexes are presented and we encompass the different approaches towards photo-related biological applications through standalone use of these complexes or by their incorporation into (nano)materials. We identify the key parameters and the challenges for successful biological application of this class of transition metal cluster complexes.

在过去的几十年中，发光八面体钼、钨和铼簇配合物在光功能材料的设计中引起了广泛的兴趣。这些配合物具有通式 [{M ₆ L ⁱ ₈ }L ^a ₆ ] ⁿ，显示出具有高量子产率的红色磷光，它们的发射被氧气淬灭，并且单线态氧 O ₂ ( ¹ Δ _g )的稳健产生. 此外，内部 (L ⁱ ) 和顶端 (L ^a) 配体允许对其物理化学、光物理和生物学特性进行微调，并针对目标应用进行额外的功能化。在这篇综述中，我们总结了将这些复合物用于生物应用的最新进展，例如光动力疗法、计算机断层扫描或细菌的光灭活。介绍了这些复合物的合成方法和特性，我们涵盖了通过单独使用这些复合物或将它们掺入（纳米）材料来实现与照片相关的生物应用的不同方法。我们确定了这类过渡金属簇配合物成功应用于生物的关键参数和挑战。