Photodynamic therapy: physical, biochemical and clinical aspects

• Grant number: 05/51598-7
• Support Opportunities: Research Projects - Thematic Grants
• Start date: March 01, 2006
• End date: December 31, 2010
• Field of knowledge: Biological Sciences - Biophysics - Radiology and Photobiology
• Agreement: CNRS
• Principal Investigator: Mauricio da Silva Baptista
• Grantee: Mauricio da Silva Baptista
• Principal researcher abroad: Carlos Manoel Venâncio Marques
• Institution abroad: Institut Charles Sadron (ICS), France
• Host Institution: Instituto de Química (IQ). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). São Paulo , SP, Brazil
• Pesquisadores principais: Rosangela Itri
• Associated research grant(s): 09/06638-1 - 12th international Conference on the formation of Semiconductor interfaces, AR.EXT
• Associated scholarship(s): 10/15611-7 - Relationship between the structure of phenothiazine photosensitizers and the damage in model membranes, BP.IC; 10/16298-0 - Effects of Photosensitizers in Planar Lipid Bilayers, BP.IC; 10/08068-5 - Synthesis, structural characterization and photobiological studies of riboflavin derivatives, BP.DR; + associated scholarships 10/08796-0 - Photo-irradiation and cellular damage: correlation between the amount of reactive species and the response of epithelial cells., BP.DR; 09/12485-3 - Aggregation process in amyloid proteins: a structural investigation and low laser therapy effect, BP.MS; 09/01254-0 - The role of cholesterol in the strucutural and electronic properties of lipid bilayers, BP.PD; 09/06410-0 - Giant Vesicles Fotosensibilization: lipoperoxidation and rafts formation, BP.MS; 09/01524-8 - Photodynamic Activity of ALA-funcionalizated Phthalocyanines, BP.PD; 08/09757-9 - Biostimulation on membrane protein Na,K-ATPase by laser low intensity: structural properties and conformacional changes by SAXS, CD, fluorescence and optical microscopy, BP.PD; 08/07240-9 - Lipid model membrane: methylene blue adsorption and photosensitization, BP.DR; 06/59062-1 - Light penetration in collagen models for potential applications in phototherapy and studies of interaction mechanisms, BP.IC - associated scholarships

Abstract

Photodynamic therapy (PDT) is a therapy in which a combination of visible light, drugs that are photoactivated and oxygen, is used to destroy tissues diseased by cancer and other pathological conditions that have abnormal cellular growth as common characteristic. Good results of a PDT treatment depend on a series of processes dealing with the interaction between light and living tissues and involve knowledge of several disciplines including physics/photonics chemistry/biochemistry and biology/medicine. These processes will be treated together in this project by an interdisciplinary team of researchers. Our main goals are: 1) to understand the physical, chemical, biochemical and medical mechanisms determining the efficiency of a PDT treatment; 2) to synthesize, characterize, apply for patents and publicize new potential drugs for use in PDT; 3) to propose new and inexpensive clinical protocols in PDT; 4) to make PDT known to the professionals working in health sciences, as well as to the general population. To reach these goals the group plans to develop five sub-projects: a) physical aspects that affect the PDT efficiency: light penetration in the living tissues and photosensibilizer activation; b) mechanisms in PDT: interaction of photoinduced reactive species with biological systems; c) in vivo PDT and clinical tests; d) synthesis of new photoactive molecules and nanomaterials; e) interaction of biologically relevant systems with membranes and interfaces. The central part of this project is focused on the physical, chemical and biochemical aspects of PDT, generating novel mechanistic knowledge. New photo-pharmaceuticals will be designed and synthesized based on this knowledge. These drugs will be characterized in their physical-structural aspects (size, shape, aggregation, magnetization) by the group of physicists, and in their chemical and biochemical aspects by a group of members of IQ-USP. The therapeutic evaluation will be performed in the ABC School of Medicine. (AU)

Scientific publications

(References retrieved automatically from Web of Science and SciELO through information on FAPESP grants and their corresponding numbers as mentioned in the publications by the authors)

TADA, DAYANE B.; ROSSI, LIANE M.; LEITE, CARLOS A. P.; ITRI, ROSANGELA; BAPTISTA, MAURICIO S.. Nanoparticle Platform to Modulate Reaction Mechanism of Phenothiazine Photosensitizers. Journal of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology, v. 10, n. 5, p. 3100-3108, MAY 2010. (05/51598-7)

GARCEZ, AGUINALDO SILVA; NUNEZ, SILVIA CRISTINA; BAPTISTA, MAURICIO S.; DAGHASTANLI, NASSER ALI; ITRI, ROSANGELA; HAMBLIN, MICHAEL R.; RIBEIRO, MARTHA SIMOES. Antimicrobial mechanisms behind photodynamic effect in the presence of hydrogen peroxide. PHOTOCHEMICAL & PHOTOBIOLOGICAL SCIENCES, v. 10, n. 4, p. 483-490, 2011. (05/51598-7)

Filed patent(s) as a result of this research project