The combination of TiO2 nanoparticles (NPs) and photosensitizers (PS) may offer significant advantages in photodynamic therapy (PDT) of melanoma, such as improved cell penetration, enhanced ROS production, and cancer selectivity. In this study, we aimed to investigate the photodynamic effect of 5,10,15,20-(Tetra-N-methyl-4-pyridyl)porphyrin tetratosylate (TMPyP4) complexes with TiO2 NPs on human cutaneous melanoma cells by irradiation with 1 mW/cm2 blue light. The porphyrin conjugation with the NPs was analyzed by absorption and FTIR spectroscopy. The morphological characterization of the complexes was performed by Scanning Electron Microscopy and Dynamic Light Scattering. The singlet oxygen generation was analyzed by phosphorescence at 1270 nm. Our predictions indicated that the non-irradiated investigated porphyrin has a low degree of toxicity. The photodynamic activity of the TMPyP4/TiO2 complex was assessed on the human melanoma Mel-Juso cell line and non-tumor skin CCD-1070Sk cell line treated with various concentrations of the PS and subjected to dark conditions and visible light-irradiation. The tested complexes of TiO2 NPs with TMPyP4 presented cytotoxicity only after activation by blue light (405 nm) mediated by the intracellular production of ROS in a dose-dependent manner. The photodynamic effect observed in this evaluation was higher in melanoma cells than the effect observed in the non-tumor cell line, demonstrating a promising potential for cancer-selectivity in PDT of melanoma.
Keywords: PDT; TMPyP4; TiO2 nanoparticles; melanoma; porphyrins; reactive oxygen species.