Efficient Singlet Oxygen Photogeneration by Zinc Porphyrin Dimers upon One- and Two-Photon Excitation

Determination of singlet oxygen quantum yield based on the behavior of solvent dimethyl sulfoxide oxidation by singlet oxygen

BACKGROUND

Photodynamic therapy (PDT) is emerging as a promising cancer treatment. The PDT efficacy is primarily attributed to the generation of singlet oxygen (1O2), stemming from the integrated effects of the photosensitizer, oxygen, and light. The singlet oxygen quantum yield (ΦΔ) serves as a bridge that links these parameters to the overall efficacy of PDT. The near-infrared luminescence of 1O2 provides a direct way for determining ΦΔ, but suffers from a poor signal-to-noise ratio. While the chemical trap probe method is detection-friendly, but it has a strict requirement for the excitation wavelength. Therefore, the existing methods for ΦΔ measurement are insufficient.

RESULTS

In this work, we developed an approach to determine ΦΔ of a broader range of photosensitizers using only the commonly used solvent dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO), which can be oxidized by 1O2 to dimethyl sulfone. This method establishes the relationship between 1O2 production and changes in DMSO absorption spectra, eliminating the need for additional chemical probes. This method was validated by measuring the ΦΔ of rose bengal (RB) through systematic changes in absorption spectrum of DMSO under various RB concentrations and different excitation light power densities. Moreover, the ΦΔ of hematoporphyrin monomethyl ether (HMME), as determined by this method, is consistent with measurements obtained using the 1,3-diphenylisobenzofuran (DPBF) trapping probe. This consistency further validates the reliability of this method.

SIGNIFICANCE AND NOVELTY

This work presents a direct, probe-free method to determine ΦΔ, reducing potential interference and expanding the range of useable excitation wavelengths. Its ability to measure ΦΔ using only DMSO enhances the accuracy of photosensitizer measurement, and broadens the applicability of the method to a wide range of samples, thereby advancing research on the properties of photosensitizers and further promoting the development of PDT.

Free base porphyrin-cyanine dye conjugate: synthesis and optical properties

The covalent combination of a cyanine dye (IR-783) with a tetraphenyl porphyrin unit through an ether linkage results in a photoactive system capable of producing singlet oxygen. The synthesis, characterization and photophysical properties of the resulting novel free base porphyrin-cyanine conjugate named TPPO-IR-783 (TOI) is reported. Excited state properties were studied in various solvents with differing polarity. The fluorescence is strongly solvent dependent, however this is not the case for singlet oxygen phosphorescence, which is only observed in tetrahydrofuran (THF), when comparing 8 different polar, non-polar and medium-polarity solvents. This novel type of porphyrin-cyanine photosensitizer has the ability to produce singlet oxygen and absorbs light at NIR wavelengths.

Photophysical characterization of tetrahydroxyphenyl porphyrin Zn(II) and V(IV) complexes: experimental and DFT study

Photodynamic therapy (PDT) is a promising technique for the treatment of various diseases. In this sense, the singlet oxygen quantum yield (Φ∆) is a physical-chemical property that allows to stablish the applicability of a potential photosensitizers (PS) as a drug for PDT. In the herein report, the Φ∆ of three photosensitizers was determined: metal-free tetrahydroxyphenyl porphyrin (THPP), THPP-Zn and the THPP-V metal complexes. Their biological application was also evaluated. Therefore, the in vitro study was carried out to assess their biological activity against Escherichia coli. The metal-porphyrin complexes exhibited highest activities against the bacterial strain Escherichia coli. at the highest concentration (175 μg/mL) and show better activity than the free base ligand (salts and blank solution). Results indicated a relation between Φ∆ and the inhibitory activity against Escherichia coli, thus, whereas higher is the Φ∆, higher is the inhibitory activity. The values of the Φ∆ and the inhibitory activity follows the tendency THPP-Zn > THPP > THPP-V. Furthermore, quantum chemical calculations allowed to gain deep insight into the electronic and optical properties of THPP-Zn macrocycle, which let to verify the most probable energy transfer pathway involved in the singlet oxygen generation.

A Comparative Evaluation of the Photosensitizing Efficiency of Porphyrins, Chlorins and Isobacteriochlorins toward Melanoma Cancer Cells

Skin cancer is one of the cancers that registers the highest number of new cases annually. Among all forms of skin cancer, melanoma is the most invasive and deadliest. The resistance of this form of cancer to conventional treatments has led to the employment of alternative/complementary therapeutic approaches. Photodynamic therapy (PDT) appears to be a promising alternative to overcome the resistance of melanoma to conventional therapies. PDT is a non-invasive therapeutic procedure in which highly reactive oxygen species (ROS) are generated upon excitation of a photosensitizer (PS) when subjected to visible light of an adequate wavelength, resulting in the death of cancer cells. In this work, inspired by the efficacy of tetrapyrrolic macrocycles to act as PS against tumor cells, we report the photophysical characterization and biological assays of isobacteriochlorins and their corresponding chlorins and porphyrins against melanoma cancer cells through a photodynamic process. The non-tumoral L929 fibroblast murine cell line was used as the control. The results show that the choice of adequate tetrapyrrolic macrocycle-based PS can be modulated to improve the performance of PDT.

Highly Coupled Heterobicycle-Fused Porphyrin Dimers: Excitonic Coupling and Charge Separation with Coordinated Fullerene, C60

Porphyrin dimers have been widely explored and studied owing to their importance in photosynthetic systems. A vast variety of dimers linked by different groups and at different angles have been synthesized and studied; however, the means by which to synthesize rigidly fused porphyrins with direct conjugation of the chromophores remains limited. Such a class of porphyrins may possess interesting properties that unconjugated or stacked dimers may not exhibit. In this study, bisbenzimidazole-fused porphyrin dimers and their mono- and bis-zinc derivatives are synthesized and characterized. As a consequence of excitonic coupling, these dimers exhibit a split Soret band irrespective of the metal ion in the porphyrin cavity. Steady-state fluorescence and excitation spectra followed by femtosecond transient absorption spectral studies of the heterometallated dimer, (free-base and zinc porphyrin) reveals the occurrence of efficient singlet-singlet energy transfer (>95 % efficiency and rate constant >10¹²  s^-1 ) within the dyad. Further, donor-acceptor conjugates were formed by metal-ligand axial coordination of phenyl imidazole functionalized C₆₀ and were characterized by a variety of physicochemical techniques. Excited state charge separation from both singlet and triplet excited states of ZnP in the conjugates has been established. The lifetime of the final charge-separated state was in the 30-40 μs range revealing charge stabilization. Interestingly, no charge separation in the conjugate derived from the heterometallated dimer was observed wherein excitation transfer dominated the process. The present study brings out the importance of the rigid π-spacer connecting porphyrin dimers in governing the energy and electron transfer events when coupled with an electron acceptor.

Characterization of the interaction of metal-protoporphyrins photosensitizers with β- lactoglobulin

We investigated the interaction of a series of metal-protoporphyrins (PPIXs) with bovine β- lactoglobulin (BLG) using a combination of optical spectroscopy and computational simulations. Unlike other studies, the simulations were not merely used to rationalize the experimental data but were employed to refine the experimental data itself. The study was carried out at two pH values, 5 and 9, where BLG is known to have different conformation dictated by the so-called Tanford transition which occurs near pH 7.5. The transition is postulated to regulate access to the interior binding cavity of the protein, thus the pH variation was used as a parameter to investigate whether PPIXs access the central cavity of BLG. The results of our study show that indeed binding increases significantly at alkaline pH, however, the increased affinity is not due to the accessibility of the central cavity. Instead, binding appears to be determined by the tendency of PPIXs to form large inhomogeneous aggregates at acidic pH which hinders interactions with proteins. The binding site determined through a combination of experimental and computational methods is located at the interface between two BLG monomers where the long α-helix segment of the protein face each other. This region is rich in positively charged Lys residues that interact with the propionic acid chains of the protoporphyrins. Establishing the modality of binding between protoporphyrins and BLG would have important consequences for the use of BLG:PPIX complexes in applications such as artificial photoreceptors, artificial metallo-enzymes, delivery of photosensitizers for phototherapy and even solar energy conversion.

Two-photon absorption of 28-hetero-2,7-naphthiporphyrins: expanded carbaporphyrinoid macrocycles

The one- and two-photon absorption (1PA and 2PA) properties of three expanded aceneporphyrinoids, 28-thia-, 28-selena- and 28-tellura-2,7-naphthiporphyrin, have been studied. The open-aperture Z-scan technique was used to determine two-photon absorption cross-sections in the near infrared range using an amplified femtosecond laser system. The maximum values of the cross sections were found to be 99, 200 and 650 GM at 900 nm and 1, 13 and 31 GM at 1400 nm for the three investigated compounds, respectively. These results demonstrate enhanced 2PA properties compared with well-known porphyrin photosensitizers, such as Foscan®, showing the potential of porphyrin core modification for optimizing infrared nonlinear absorbers.

Prospects for More Efficient Multi-Photon Absorption Photosensitizers Exhibiting Both Reactive Oxygen Species Generation and Luminescence

The use of two-photon absorption (TPA) for such applications as microscopy, imaging, and photodynamic therapy (PDT) offers several advantages over the usual one-photon excitation. This creates a need for photosensitizers that exhibit both strong two-photon absorption and the highly efficient generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS), as well as, ideally, bright luminescence. This review focuses on different strategies utilized to improve the TPA properties of various multi-photon absorbing species that have the required photophysical properties. Along with well-known families of photosensitizers, including porphyrins, we also describe other promising organic and organometallic structures and more complex systems involving organic and inorganic nanoparticles. We concentrate on the published studies that provide two-photon absorption cross-section values and the singlet oxygen (or other ROS) and luminescence quantum yields, which are crucial for potential use within PDT and diagnostics. We hope that this review will aid in the design and modification of novel TPA photosensitizers, which can help in exploiting the features of nonlinear absorption processes.

Ultrafast broadband nonlinear optical properties and excited-state dynamics of two bis-chalcone derivatives

The development of organic nonlinear optical (NLO) chromophores is vital for various fields such as two-photon biomedical imaging, optical limiting, etc. In this work, two bis-chalcone molecules 1,4-bis[3-(2,4-dimethoxyphenyl)-2-acryloyl]benzene (C1) and 4,4'-bis[3-(2,4-bimethoxy phenyl)-2-acryloyl]biphenyl (C2) were synthesized and characterized. The excited-state dynamics of these two chromophores were studied using femtosecond transient absorption (TA) measurements. And their broadband nonlinear absorption properties and optical limiting (OL) response were investigated by femtosecond open-aperture Z-scan and intensity-dependent transmittance measurements in the wavelength range from 515 nm to 800 nm, respectively. The TA results demonstrate that C2 has strong excited-state absorption behavior and longer lifetime. In addition, the nonlinear absorption response of C2 was found to be superior to that of C1 in the visible range after 500 nm, which is attributed to a two-photon-absorption induced excited-state absorption mechanism. These results indicate that the nonlinear optical response and excited-state dynamics in bis-chalcone compounds could be enhanced via intramolecular charge-transfer.

A novel BODIPY-based photosensitizer with pH-active singlet oxygen generation for photodynamic therapy in lysosomes

A novel photosensitizer BDPI-lyso has been developed for photodynamic therapy (PDT). The photosensitizer BDPI-lyso showed a high singlet oxygen quantum yield (ΦΔ = 0.95) and low fluorescence quantum yield (ΦF = 0.05) in EtOH. Different singlet oxygen quantum yields were found in acidic solution (pH = 5, ΦΔ = 0.51) and in neutral solution (pH = 7, ΦΔ = 0.38). DFT and TD-DFT calculations of BDPI-lyso and its protonated product BDPI-lysoH+ indicated that the S1/T3 transition was responsible for the intersystem crossing (ISC) enhancement which would promote the production of singlet oxygen. The negligible dark cytotoxicity toward the hepatoma cell line Bel-7402 was confirmed by MTT assay, AO/EB dual staining, and cell images. Upon exposure to a low dose of light illumination, the disruption of the cell plasma membrane and the calculated half-maximal inhibitory concentration (IC50) of 0.4 μM showed a high phototoxicity of the photosensitizer BDPI-lyso. The light-induced intracellular ROS generation was verified as the PDT mechanism of BDPI-lyso. Colocalization experiments of LysoTracker Green and BDPI-lyso in the dark indicated the good lysosome-targeting ability of BDPI-lyso. The images of cells costained with LysoTracker Green and BDPI-lyso, and the appearance of intracellular and extracellular blebs with green fluorescence after light illumination revealed the light-induced dysfunction of lysosomes and cell apoptosis.

Non-aggregated lipophilic water-soluble tin porphyrins as photosensitizers for photodynamic therapy and photodynamic antimicrobial chemotherapy

Readily-synthesized water-soluble Sn(iv) tetrapyridylporphyrin dyes have been prepared which exhibit enhanced properties for use as photosensitizer dyes in biomedical applications.

Optoelectronic, femtosecond nonlinear optical properties and excited state dynamics of a triphenyl imidazole induced phthalocyanine derivative

A novel zinc phthalocyanine derivative [2(3), 9(10), 16(17), 23(24) tetrakis-4-((4-(1,4,5-triphenyl-1H-imidazol-2-yl)phenyl)ethynyl)phthalocyanine zinc(ii) (PBIPC)] was synthesized by incorporating a triphenyl imidazole moiety at its peripheral positions. The detailed mechanisms of absorption, emission, electrochemical, nonlinear optical (NLO) and photophysical (excited state dynamics) properties of PBIPC were explored. The absorption and emission properties of the compound were studied in different solvents. The incorporation of a triphenyl imidazole moiety at the peripheral position of the zinc phthalocyanine slightly broadened the Soret band. The emission studies revealed fluorescence quantum yields to be in the range of 0.11-0.22. The time-resolved fluorescence data established the radiative lifetimes to be in the nanosecond range. The oxidation and reduction processes were found to be ring centered, which were studied using the cyclic voltammetry (CV) technique. The energy optimized structures and HOMO-LUMO levels were calculated using DFT, TD-DFT analysis and were employed by means of hybrid functional theory (B3LYP) at 6-31G (d,p) basis set in the Gaussian 09 package. Two-photon absorption was observed in the NLO studies performed in the visible wavelength range of 600-800 nm while the nonlinear absorption was dominated by three- and four-photon absorption processes in the NIR wavelength range (1.0-1.5 μm). The molecule exhibited self-focusing behavior for all the wavelengths. Finally, the excited state dynamics of the title molecule PBIPC were investigated using femtosecond transient absorption spectroscopy and the results obtained were understood on the basis of a simple three kinetic model, for excitation wavelengths of 400 nm (Soret band) and 650 nm (Q-band). Both the spectra demonstrated a broad positive transient absorption (TA) data which overlapped with the ground state bleach (GSB), which in turn displayed a red shift over a delay of ∼2 ns. The lifetimes revealed a possibility of intersystem crossing (τ > 1 ns) owing to the triplet state transition.

Biocompatible conjugated fluorenylporphyrins for two-photon photodynamic therapy and fluorescence imaging

The photophysical properties of a new series of fluorenyl porphyrins bearing water-solubilising oligoethyleneglycol chains are described. These biocompatible compounds present very good two-photon absorption and singlet oxygen generation properties, while retaining some fluorescence in water. After testing in vitro on breast cancer cells, some of them were shown to be efficient non-toxic two-photon photosensitisers allowing for fluorescence imaging, thus demonstrating their theranostic potential.