Chlorin-e6 (chl-e6) and a hydrogenated derivative (chl-e6H) were semi-synthesized, and their photophysical properties and photodynamic activity against Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus and Candida albicans evaluated. Methyl pheophorbide-a (Mepheo-a) was obtained from S. maxima using methanolic extraction with acid catalysis (CH₃OH–H₂SO₄). Chlorin-e6 was prepared from Mepheo-a by basic hydrolysis with H₂O–acetone and NaOH. Hydrogenated Chlorin-e6 was synthesized by a similar procedure starting from the hydrogenated methyl pheophorbide-a (Mepheo-aH). Photophysical studies were performed in order to determine the singlet oxygen quantum yield of chl-e6H which is higher than that of chl-e6. The microorganism inactivation of chl-e6 and chl-e6H was investigated at two concentrations and three fluence levels. Both chl-e6 and chl-e6H showed microorganism inactivation against Gram-positive bacteria and a fungus.

Melanoma is the most aggressive skin cancer type. It is characterized by pigmented lesions with high tissue invasion and metastatic potential. The early detection of melanoma is extremely important to improve patient prognosis and survival rate, since it can progress to the deadly metastatic stage. Presently, the melanoma diagnosis is based on the clinical analysis of the macroscopic lesion characteristics such as shape, color, borders following the ABCD rules. The aim of this study is to evaluate the time-resolved fluorescence lifetime of NADH and FAD molecules to detect cutaneous melanoma in an experimental in vivo model. Forty-two lesions were analyzed and the data was classified using linear discriminant analysis, a sensitivity of 99.4%, specificity of 97.4% and accuracy of 98.4% were achieved. These results show the potential of this fluorescence spectroscopy for melanoma detection.

Melanoma is the most aggressive type of skin cancer, with significant risk of fatality. Due to its pigmentation, light-based imaging and treatment techniques are limited to near the tumor surface, which is inadequate, for example, to evaluate the microvascular density that is associated with prognosis. White-light diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (DRS) and near-infrared optical coherence tomography (OCT) were used to evaluate the effect of a topically applied optical clearing agent (OCA) in melanoma in vivo and to image the microvascular network. DRS was performed using a contact fiber optic probe in the range from 450 to 650 nm. OCT imaging was performed using a swept-source system at 1310 nm. The OCT image data were processed using speckle variance and depth-encoded algorithms. Diffuse reflectance signals decreased with clearing, dropping by $∼90%$ after 45 min. OCT was able to image the microvasculature in the pigmented melanoma tissue with good spatial resolution up to a depth of $∼300μm$ without the use of OCA; improved contrast resolution was achieved with optical clearing to a depth of $∼750μm$ in tumor. These findings are relevant to potential clinical applications in melanoma, such as assessing prognosis and treatment responses. Optical clearing may also facilitate the use of light-based treatments such as photodynamic therapy.

Treatment using light-activated photosensitizers (photodynamic therapy, PDT) has shown limited efficacy in pigmented melanoma, mainly due to the poor penetration of light in this tissue. Here, an optical clearing agent (OCA) was applied topically to a cutaneous melanoma model in mice shortly before PDT to increase the effective treatment depth by reducing the light scattering. This was used together with cellular and vascular-PDT, or a combination of both. The effect on tumor growth was measured by longitudinal ultrasound/photoacoustic imaging in vivo and by immunohistology after sacrifice. In a separate dorsal window chamber tumor model, angiographic optical coherence tomography (OCT) generated 3D tissue microvascular images, enabling direct in vivo assessment of treatment response. The optical clearing had minimal therapeutic effect on the in control, non-pigmented cutaneous melanomas but a statistically significant effect (p < 0.05) in pigmented lesions for both single- and dual-photosensitizer treatment regimes. The latter enabled full-depth eradication of tumor tissue, demonstrated by the absence of S100 and Ki67 immunostaining. These studies are the first to demonstrate complete melanoma response to PDT in an immunocompromised model in vivo, with quantitative assessment of tumor volume and thickness, confirmed by (immuno) histological analyses, and with non-pigmented melanomas used as controls to clarify the critical role of melanin in the PDT response. The results indicate the potential of OCA-enhanced PDT for the treatment of pigmented lesions, including melanoma.

Radiodynamic therapy (RDT) is a recent extension of conventional photodynamic therapy, in which visible/near infrared light irradiation is replaced by a well-tolerated dose of high-energy X-rays. This enables greater tissue penetration to allow non-invasive treatment of large, deep-seated tumors. We report here the design and testing of a drug delivery system for RDT that is intended to enhance intra- or peri-nuclear localization of the photosensitizer, leading to DNA damage and resulting clonogenic cell kill. This comprises a photosensitizer (Verteporfin, VP) incorporated into poly (lactic-co-glycolic acid) nanoparticles (PLGA NPs) that are surface-functionalized with a cell-penetrating HIV trans-activator of transcription (TAT) peptide. In addition to a series of physical and photophysical characterization studies, cytotoxicity tests in pancreatic (PANC-1) cancer cells in vitro under 4 Gy X-ray exposure from a clinical 6 MV linear accelerator (LINAC) showed that TAT targeting of the nanoparticles markedly enhances the effectiveness of RDT treatment, particularly when assessed by a clonogenic, i.e., DNA damage-mediated, cell kill.