Synthesis, characterization and phototoxicity evaluation of gold nanorod-phthalocyanine complexes

Abstract

Hyperthermia and photodynamic therapy are very promising interventions for cancer ablation, for microorganisms eradication and for many diseases diagnostics. Some studies indicate that if both therapies are performed together, there is a synergistic effect which enhances the therapeutic success rate. We propose to investigate this synergistic effect using gold nanorods (well-characterized devices for hyperthermia generation) with attached zync phthalocyanine molecules (a very efficient photosensitizer). The nanorods will be synthesized by a seed mediated method, and the phthalocyanines will form a charge complex with CTAB covering the nanoparticles. The nanorod-phthalocyanines complexes will be analyzed by TEM, and their singlet oxygen generation yield will be assessed. Furthermore, they will be tested in vitro in B16F10 melanoma cells, and in vivo. The tumor cells (in vitro) and the tumor tissue (in vivo) with nanoparticles will be irradiated with laser (at 800 and 680 nm), and the tumor damage will be microscopically verified. The tumor growth in mice will also be observed for 30 days after the laser irradiation. The data will be statistically evaluated by Students-T test, and the confidence intervals will be analyzed in order to verify the significance of the results. (AU)