PHOTOSENSITIZATION WITH A CHLORIN-THIOBARBITURATE CONJUGATE

Abstract— The photobiologic properties of a chlorin-thiobarbiturate conjugate were examined. In addition to the characteristic 670 nm chlorin absorbance, the conjugate exhibited new absorbance bands at 517 and 743 nm, but these were not a part of the fluorescence emission spectra, nor was fluorescence observed at wavelengths >670 nm. The action spectrum indicated that the long-wavelength absorbance of the conjugate was not involved in phototoxicity in cell culture, and that only irradiation at wavelengths associated with the chlorin moiety yielded a cytotoxic effect. In vivo cytotoxicity elicited by 745 nm irradiation is attributed to thermal effects.