Abstract

Photodynamic therapy (PDT) is a promising alternative to conventional cancer treatment methods. Nonetheless, improvement of in vivo light penetration and cancer cell-targeting efficiency remain major challenges in clinical photodynamic therapy. This study aimed to develop multifunctional magnetic nanoparticles conjugated with a photosensitizer (PS) and cancer-targeting molecules via a simple surface modification process for PDT. To selectively target cancer cells and PDT functionality, core magnetic (Fe3O4) nanoparticles were covalently bound with chlorin e6 (Ce6) as a PS and folic acid (FA). When irradiated with a 660-nm long-wavelength light source, the Fe3O4-Ce6-FA nanoparticles with good biocompatibility exerted marked anticancer effects via apoptosis, as confirmed by analyzing the translocation of the plasma membrane, nuclear fragmentation, activities of caspase-3/7 in prostate (PC-3) and breast (MCF-7) cancer cells. Ce6, used herein as a PS, is thus more useful for PDT because of its ability to produce a high singlet oxygen quantum yield, which is owed to deep penetration by virtue of its long-wavelength absorption band; however, further in vivo studies are required to verify its biological effects for clinical applications.

Highlights

  • Cancer is a leading cause of mortality worldwide

  • Both cell types (MCF-7 and PC-3) in the Fe3O4-chlorin e6 (Ce6)-folic acid (FA) nanoparticle-treated groups showed green fluorescence, whereas control cells did not. These results indicate that Photodynamic therapy (PDT) following treatment with Fe3O4-Ce6-FA nanoparticles induced cancer cell death via apoptosis

  • No changes were detected in the control cells of both cell lines. These results indicated that irradiation after treatment with Fe3O4-Ce6-FA nanoparticles enhanced apoptotic cell death

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Summary

Introduction

An estimated 11 million individuals are diagnosed with cancer, and approximately 7 million individuals die of cancer according to the World Health Organization (WHO) [1]. Cancer currently ranks among the deadliest diseases, and advancements in medical technology have yielded various methods for cancer treatment over the last few decades [2]. Traditional chemotherapy is limited by its severe toxicity, poor tumor-specific delivery, and the possibility of inducing multi-drug resistance [3,4,5]. In comparison with chemotherapy, photodynamic therapy (PDT) offers certain unique advantages including minimal invasiveness, fewer side effects, negligible chemotherapeutic resistance, and low systematic toxicity [6,7,8]. In PDT, photosensitizers (PS) are the key components that transfer photo-energy to the (s1uOrr2o)N,uatnnoodmieantleigrmialOisn220a1tm8e, 8op, lxerFocOuxRilmePsEa,ElRgcReaEnnVeIcEreaWrtincegllsre[a9c–t1iv2e]

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