A Novel Photosensitizer Based 450-nm Blue Laser-Mediated Photodynamic Therapy Induces Apoptosis in Colorectal Cancer - in Vitro and in Vivo Study

Background: Due to its non-invasive and widely applicable features, photodynamic therapy (PDT) has been a prominent treatment approach against Cancer in recent years. However, its widespread application in clinical practice is limited by the dark toxicity of photosensitizers and insufficient penetration of LIGHT sources. This study assessed the Anticancer effects of a novel photosensitizer 5-(4-amino-phenyl)-10,15,20-triphenylporphyrin with diethylene-triaminopentaacetic acid (ATPP-DTPA)-mediated PDT (hereinafter referred to as ATPP-PDT) under the irradiation of a 450-nm blue laser on colorectal Cancer (CRC) in vivo and in vitro.

Methods: After 450-nm blue laser-mediated ATPP-PDT and the traditional photosensitizer 5-aminolevulinic acid (5-ALA)-PDT treatment, cell viability was detected through Cell Counting Kit-8 (CCK-8) and 5-ethynyl-2'-deoxyuridine (EdU) assays. Reactive Oxygen Species (ROS) generation was quantified by flow cytometry and fluorescence microscopy. Western blotting and transcriptome RNA sequencing and functional experiments were used to evaluate cell Apoptosis and its potential mechanism. Anti-tumor experiment in vivo was performed in nude mice with subcutaneous tumors.

Results: ATPP-DTPA had a marvelous absorption in the blue spectrum. Compared with 5-ALA, ATPP-DTPA could achieve significant killing effects at a lower dose. Owing to generating an excessive amount of ROS, 450-nm blue laser-mediated PDT based on ATPP-DTPA resulted in evident growth inhibition and Apoptosis in CRC cells in vitro. After transcriptome RNA sequencing and functional experiments, p38 MAPK signaling pathway was confirmed to be involved in the regulation of Apoptosis induced by 450-nm blue laser-mediated ATPP-PDT. Additionally, animal studies using xenograft model confirmed that ATPP-PDT had excellent anti-tumor effect and reasonable biosafety in vivo.

Conclusions: PDT mediated by 450-nm blue laser combined with ATPP-DTPA may be a novel and effective method for the treatment of CRC.

ATPP-DTPA; apoptosis; colorectal cancer; p38 MAPK; photodynamic therapy.