In vitro study of cell death with 5-aminolevulinic acid based photodynamic therapy to improve the efficiency of cancer treatment

Photodynamic therapy (PDT) is a kind of photochemo therapeutic treatment that exerts its effect mainly through the induction of cell death. Distinct types of cell death may be elicited by different PDT regimes. In this study, efforts are underway to optimize PDT protocols for improved efficacy and combination of all three PDT mechanisms involved in the different human carcinomas cell narcosis. Our in vitro cell culture experiments with 5-aminolevulanic acid (ALA) a clinically approved photiosensitizer (PS) and 635 nm laser light have yielded promising results, as follow: (1) (human cervical cancer (HeLa) cell line incubated, for 18 h, with 30 μg/ml of 5-ALA, treated with laser light dose of 50 J/cm² can produce 85% of cell killing (2) human larynx carcinoma (Hep2c) cell line incubated, for 7 h, with 55 μg/ml of 5-ALA, treated with laser light dose of 85 J/cm² can produce 75% of cell killing (3) human liver cancer (HepG2) cell line incubated, for 22–48 h, with 262 μg/ml of 5-ALA, treated with laser light dose of 120 J/cm² can produce 95% of cell killing (4) human muscle cancer (RD) cell line incubated, for 47 h, with 250 μg/ml of 5-ALA, treated with laser light dose of 80 J/cm² can produce 76% of cell killing (5) Human embryonic kidney (HEK293T) cell line incu-bated, for 18 h, with 400 μg/ml of 5-ALA, treated with laser light dose of 40 J/cm2 can produce 82% of cell killing confirming the efficacy of photodynamic therapy.