A chemical dosimeter for the determination of the photodynamic activity of photosensitizers.

Uric acid a known singlet oxygen scavenger, was investigated as a chemical dosimeter in physiological aqueous solution for use in photodynamic therapy. The uric acid test takes the decrease in uric acid (UA) absorbance at 293 nm after laser light irradiation of a solution containing UA and a photosensitizer as a rapid evaluation of relative photodynamic activities of the photosensitizer. A uric acid test standard procedure was defined. To compare photodynamic activity of different photosensitizers or irradiation conditions a proposal for a photodynamic activity scale based on the uric acid test is given. Examples of uric acid test operation are given by comparing the changes in UA absorbance decrease with respect to irradiation wavelength and to photosensitizer concentration of Photofrin II with that of two other photosensitizers (5,10,15,20-tetrakis-[4-hydroxyphenyl]-21H,23H-porphyrin (TOP) and 5,10,15,20-tetrakis-[4-carboxyphenyl)-21H, 23H-porphyrin (TCPP), both derivatized with methoxypolyethyleneglycol (TOP-MPV and TCPP-AMP) as a macromolecular carrier). The photodynamic activity of the three photosensitizers using the proposed photodynamic activity scale is given.