Photodynamic therapy (PDT) is a treatment that uses photosensitizer agents such as porphyrins to cause apoptosis in cancer cells by generating singlet oxygen when exposed to visible light. Porphyrins are tetrapyrrole compounds made up of four pyrrole subunits linked by mesobridges. The tetratolylporphyrin (TTP) being used in this study was synthesized by a modified Adler method and purified using column chromatography with 100% chloroform on a 60Å mesh silica. Purity was tested by TLC, UV-Vis, and NMR. Because TTP is not water soluble, liposomes were used in this research project as a drug delivery system. The liposomes were prepared by using 14 mg of DPPC diluted in 1.0 mL absolute ethanol. In a separate vial, 1.1 mg of porphyrin was dissolved in 1.0 mL chloroform. The two solutions were mixed and 750 microliters was added to 10.0 mL of phosphate buffer (0.10 M, 0.15 M NaCl, pH 7.4) and heated in a water bath at 55°C. The solution was allowed to cool and then dialyzed for 24 hours. A visible spectra was obtained with a 420-nm peak, indicating porphyrin incorporation. To assess the potential anti-tumorigenic property of our porphyrin, breast cancer cell lines (MDA-MB-231 and MCF-7) will be incubated for 24 and 48 hours respectively following visible white light irradiation. After 24hrs, cells will be assessed for cell viability, using the MTT assay.  Lastly, treated cells will be lysed and subjected to Western Blot analysis for apoptotic markers, such as but not limited to, caspase 3/7.

Assessing the potential anti-cancer properties of tetraphenylporphyrin in human breast cancer cells

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