Amphiphilic cyclodextrin (ACyD) provides water-soluble and adaptable nanovectors by modulating the balance between the hydrophobic and hydrophilic chains at both CyD sides. This work aimed to design nanoassemblies based on nonionic and hydrophilic ACyD (SC6OH) for the delivery of a poor-water-soluble organotin(IV)-porphyrin derivative [(Bu3Sn)(4)TPPS] to melanoma cancer cells. To characterize the porphyrin derivatives under simulated physiological conditions, a speciation was performed using complementary techniques. In aqueous solution (<= 20 mu M), (Bu3Sn)(4)TPPS primarily exists as a monomer (2 in Figure 1), as suggested by the low static anisotropy (rho approximate to 0.02) with a negligible formation of porphyrin supramolecular aggregates. MALDI-TOF spectra indicate the presence of moieties (i.e., [(Bu3Sn)(3)TPPS](-)) that are derivatives of the monomeric species. Spectrofluorimetry coupled with potentiometric measurements primarily assesses the presence of the hydrolytic [(Bu3Sn)(4)TPPS (OH)(4)](4-) species under physiological conditions. Nanoassemblies of (Bu3Sn)(4)TPPS/SC6OH were prepared by dispersion of organic films in PBS at pH 7.4 and were investigated using a combination of spectroscopic and morphological techniques. The UV-vis and emission fluorescence spectra of the (Bu3Sn)(4)TPPS/SC6OH reveal shifts in the peculiar bands of the organotin(IV)-porphyrin derivative due to its interaction with the ACyD supramolecular assemblies in aqueous solution. The mean size was within the range of 100-120 nm. The xi-potential was negative (-16 mV) for the (Bu3Sn)(4)TPPS/SC6OH nanoassemblies, with an entrapment efficiency of approximately 67%. The intracellular delivery, cytotoxicity, nuclear morphology and cell growth kinetics were evaluated via fluorescence microscopy on A375 human melanoma cells. The delivery of (Bu3Sn)(4)TPPS by ACyD with respect to free (Bu3Sn)(4)TPPS increases the internalization efficiency and cytotoxicity to induce apoptotic cell death and, at lower concentrations, changes the cellular morphology and prevents cell proliferation.