Investigation of singlet oxygen quantum yield of protonated water-soluble glycosylated porphyrin photosensitizer for photodynamic therapy.

In this study, we explored the photophysical properties of three forms of glycosylated porphyrin photosensitizers, mainly focusing on their ability to generate singlet oxygen for photodynamic therapy. Porphyrin derivatives are known for their efficacy in photodynamic therapy due to their ability to generate singlet oxygen, a reactive oxygen species crucial for cellular damage in cancer therapy. The three porphyrin molecules are designated as free-base (GPPOH), protonated (PGPPOH), and metalated (ZnGPPOH) glycosylated porphyrins. The singlet oxygen quantum yield (Φ) values were determined through the UV-visible spectroscopic technique using a singlet oxygen quenchers, 1,3-diphenylisobenzofuran, and anthracene1,3-dimethyl malonate. Our findings reveal that PGPPOH porphyrin photosensitizer exhibits the highest Φ value, followed by ZnGPPOH and GPPOH, indicating a correlation between molecular structure and photodynamic efficiency. Photo-cytotoxicity studies also demonstrate that PGPPOH exhibits greater cell apoptosis in HeLa cells, while showing minimal cytotoxic effects in HEK cells than GPPOH and ZnGPPOH. PGPPOH has two positive charges in its core, which may preferentially localize it to cancer cells with negative mitochondrial membrane potential. This study provides valuable insights for optimizing porphyrin-based photosensitizers in therapeutic applications.