Antibacterial photodynamic therapy: overview of a promising approach to fight antibiotic-resistant bacterial infections

Abstract

Antibacterial photodynamic therapy (APDT) has drawn increasing attention from the scientific society for its potential to effectively kill multidrug-resistant pathogenic bacteria and for its low tendency to induce drug resistance that bacteria can rapidly develop against traditional antibiotic therapy. The review summarizes the mechanism of action of APDT, the photosensitizers, the barriers to PS localization, the targets, the in vitro-, in vivo-, and clinical evidence, the current developments in terms of treating Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria, the limitations, as well as future perspectives. Relevance for patients: A structured overview of all important aspects of APDT is provided in the context of resistant bacterial species. The information presented is relevant and accessible for scientists as well as clinicians, whose joint effort is required to ensure that this technology benefits patients in the post-antibiotic era.

Beyond Antibiotics: Photo/Sonodynamic Approaches for Bacterial Theranostics

“…Both of bacterial species show an overall negatively charged cell surface. Such anionic envelope acts as an electro-attractive scaffold for cationic sensitizers that are more efficiently bound to and internalized by bacteria [27].…”

“…These photosensitizers are commonly amphipathic planar molecules that contain one intrinsic quaternary nitrogen atom. By virtue of intrinsic cationic property, phenothiaziniums can strongly bind with bacteria, showing photocytotoxicity against a broad spectrum of microorganisms, such as S. aureus, E. coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Acinetobacter baumannii, and Streptococci [27]. It is pharmacodynamically interesting that this class of photosensitizers can be employed as inherent antibacterial compounds, also under dark conditions https://doi.org/10.1007/s40820-020-00485-3 © The authors [58].…”

Monosubstituted tricationic Zn(II) phthalocyanine enhances antimicrobial photodynamic inactivation (aPDI) of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and cytotoxicity evaluation for topical applications: in vitro and in vivo study

“…Secondly, the absence of toxicity towards non-irradiated tissues along with the high specificity of PS towards microorganism provides a perfect platform for the infected site-confined therapy. Consequently, toxicity is largely absent in the PSdepleted zone [14]. Finally, the rapid inactivation of microorganisms [15] as well as the limited or no resistance developed against the PSs has been reported to date [16,17].…”

Spectral Properties of Zinc and Cobalt Meso-Tetraphenylporphyrins in Polymer Films

“…Порфиринаты цинка и кобальта активно изучаются на протяжении нескольких десятков лет, причем с каждым годом интерес к этой группе соединений не только не угасает, но постоянно растет [1,2]. Функциональные материалы на основе металлопорфиринов широко используются для фотодинамической терапии, фотодинамического разрушения вирусов [3], в качестве химических сенсоров [2,4], полупроводников [5], в нелинейной оптике [6], как фотоэлектрические материалы [7], оптоэлектрические запоминающие устройства [8] и светодиоды [9]. Они проявляют каталитическую активность в процессе радикальной полимеризации виниловых мономеров, являются компонентами инициирующих систем для проведения полимеризации в контролируемом режиме [10], мономерами для синтеза порфиринполимеров, а также являются важным звеном при формировании функциональных полимерных материалов [11].…”