merocyanine-dye and aluminum-tetrasulfophthalocyanine

The pros and cons of purging of either bone marrow or peripheral blood stem cell preparations for autologous transplantation for cancer has been debated strongly over the past decade. Recent data implicating the role of minimal residual disease in autografted marrow in cancer relapse have renewed interest in this question. There is a considerable body of literature supporting the possibility that photosensitizer molecules in combination with light might provide a therapeutic window permitting selective elimination of malignant stem cells while sparing those of normal lineage. Molecules of this class are known to be taken up more actively by most malignant cells, and intracellular concentrations are critical in their cytotoxic effect when they are activated by light at an appropriate wavelength. The present paper reviews the observations made over the past decade on a variety of photosensitizers and their effects on hemopoietic progenitors.

Topics: Bone Marrow Purging; Bone Marrow Transplantation; Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation; Hematopoietic Stem Cells; Hematoporphyrin Derivative; Humans; Indoles; Light; Neoplasms; Neoplastic Stem Cells; Organometallic Compounds; Photosensitizing Agents; Porphyrins; Pyrimidinones

Merocyanine 540 (MC540)-mediated photodynamic damage to erythrocytes was strongly reduced when illumination was performed at pH 8.5 as compared to pH 7.4. This could be explained by high pH-mediated hyperpolarization of the erythrocyte membrane, resulting in decreased MC540 binding at pH 8.5. In accordance, the MC540-mediated photooxidation of open ghosts was not inhibited at pH 8.5. Photoinactivation of vesicular stomatitis virus (VSV) was not inhibited at pH 8.5. This suggests that illumination at increased pH could be an approach to protect red blood cells selectively against MC540-mediated virucidal phototreatment. With tetrasulfonated aluminum phthalocyanine (AIPcS4) as photosensitizer, damage to erythrocytes, open ghosts and VSV was decreased when illuminated at pH 8.5. A decreased singlet oxygen yield at high pH could be excluded. The AIPcS4-mediated photooxidation of fixed erythrocytes was strongly dependent on the cation concentration in the buffer, indicating that the surface potential may affect the efficacy of this photosensitizer. This study showed that altering the environment of the target could increase both the efficacy and the specificity of a photodynamic treatment.

Topics: Erythrocyte Membrane; Erythrocytes; Histidine; Humans; Hydrogen-Ion Concentration; In Vitro Techniques; Indoles; Organometallic Compounds; Photobiology; Photochemotherapy; Photosensitizing Agents; Pyrimidinones; Vesicular stomatitis Indiana virus

In the presence of albumin Merocyanine 540 (MC540) exhibits a very limited binding to the outer surface of the membrane of normal erythrocytes, whereas pronounced binding is observed to leukemia cells. To find out whether this difference is due to differences in the composition or structural organization of the cell membrane we analyzed effects of a number of covalent and non-covalent perturbations of the red cell membrane on the binding and fluorescence characteristics of membrane-bound MC540. It is shown that exposure of the cells to cationic chlorpromazine, neuraminidase or photodynamic treatment with AlPcS4 as sensitizer caused a limited increase (30-50%) of MC540 binding, together with a red shift of the fluorescence emission maximum and an increase of the relative fluorescence quantum yield of membrane-bound MC540. Other forms of perturbation of the membrane structure, like hyperthermia (48 degrees C) and treatments that produce a decrease of phospholipid asymmetry in addition to accelerated flip-flop, did not result in increased MC540 binding, but did cause a red shift of the fluorescence emission maximum and an increase of the relative fluorescence quantum yield. These changes in fluorescence properties indicate a penetration of the dye into more hydrophobic regions in the membrane. MC540, bound to Brown Norway myelocytic leukemia cells, exhibited a red shift of the fluorescence emission maximum and an increased relative fluorescence quantum yield as compared to MC540 bound to untreated erythrocytes. These changes were of the same order of magnitude as in photodynamically treated red blood cells. Dye binding per surface area, however, was about 3-times higher with these leukemia cells than with photodynamically treated red blood cells. This demonstrates that certain perturbations of the erythrocyte membrane evoked a MC540 binding that became qualitatively comparable to the dye binding to leukemia cells, although dye binding per surface area was still significantly lower.

Topics: Cell Membrane; Chlorpromazine; Cholesterol; Erythrocyte Membrane; Hot Temperature; Humans; Indoles; Leukemia, Myeloid; Light; Lipid Bilayers; Neuraminidase; Organometallic Compounds; Pyrimidinones; Radiation-Sensitizing Agents; Spectrometry, Fluorescence; Tumor Cells, Cultured