We conducted a series of in vitro experiments to evaluate the efficiency of photodynamic therapy on head and neck cancer cell using hydroxybacteriochlorine from photosynthetic bacteria. We tested the cytotoxicity of the hydroxybacteriochlorine by MTI assay and observed the cell death pattern(apoptosis or necrosis) after PDT by hoechst 33342 and propidium iodide staining methods IC50 value of the hydroxybacteriochlorine was 0.22μg/rrúi. At higher doses of hydroxybacteriochlorine () 0.6μg/rrúi) , cancer cells died exclusively by necrosis after PDT. By contrast, at IC50 value, hydroxybacteriochlorine induced cancer cell to undergo apoptotic cell death. The induction begins approximately 6 hours after PDT. We investigates intracellular localization of hydroxybacteriochlorine by head & neck cancer cell via confocal laser scanning microscopy. Head & neck cancer cells dual-stained with hydroxybacteriochlorine and a panel of organelle- specific fluorescence probes (Mitotracker, Lysotracker, ER-Tracker) revealed an intracellular fluorescence distribution restricted to cytoplasmic compartments with no detectable fluorescence in the nucleus Confocal images of cells containing hydroxybacteriochlorine were never overlap in subcellular organelle fluorescence when digitally over layed with the organelle-specific fluorescence probe images of the same cells. These results demonstrated that the hydroxybacteriochlorine may have a function as a photosensitizer.