Lysosomal photodamage induces cell death via mitochondrial apoptotic pathway

Abstract

ABSTRACT Lysosomal photosensitizers have been used in photodynamic therapy (PDT). Combination of such photosensitizers and light causes lysosomal photodamage, inducing cell death. The lysosomal disruption can lead to apoptosis but its signaling pathways remain to be elucidated. In this study, we selected N-aspartyl chlorin e6 (NPe6), an effective photosensitizer which preferentially accumulates in lysosomes, to study the mechanism of apoptosis caused by lysosomal photodamage. Apoptosis in living human lung adenocarcinoma cells treated by NPe6-PDT was studied using real-time single-cell analysis. In this study, the fluorescence probes Cyto c-GFP and DsRed-Mit were used to detect the spatial and temporal changes of cytochrome c in real-time in sub-cell level; the Rhodamine 123 dyes were used to monitor the changes of mitochondrial membrane potential. The results showed that, after PDT treatment,the mitochondrial membrane potential decreased, and cytochrome c released from mitochondria; The caspase-3 was activated obviously. These results suggested that lysosomal photodamage activates mitochondrial apoptotic pathway to induce cell death. Keywords: Photodynamic therapy (PDT), Apoptosis, N-aspartyl chlorin e6 (NPe6), Mitochondrial pathway