Multiphoton excitation and photodynamic activity of macromolecular derivatizated mTHPC

Multiphoton excitation of photosensitizers in photodynamic therapy constitutes a promising approach, because of the increasing tissue penetration for longer wavelength of illumination. In this contribution the photodynamic activity of polyethylene glycol macromolecular derivatized mTHPC upon two-photon excitation is established. To test the photo- activity of the photosensitizer, human colon carcinoma cells, HCT-116, were incubated with 2 {mu} g/ml of mTHPC- CMPEG4 in the nutrition medium. Subsequent pulsed laser irradiation at 784 nm focused down on growing cell monolayers restricts cell vitality clearly within 24 hours after irradiation. To investigate whether an anoxic or euoxic energy transfer mechanism is involved, a uric acid assay was performed to test for the generation of singlet oxygen. Upon single-photon excitation mTHPC-CMPEG4 in TriPEG decomposed uric acid via the generation of singlet oxygen. Using femtosecond pulsed laser irradiation no decomposition of the uric acid was found, implying an anoxic energy transfer mechanism after tow-photon excitation. However, at present, we cannot exclude local hyperthermic effects in the cells containing the photosensitizer to contribute to the photodynamic activity upon two-photon excitation