DEVELOPING WATER-SOLUBLE CATIONIC Zn(II) PORPHYRINS AS EFFICIENT PHOTOSENSITIZERS FOR ANTIMICROBIAL PHOTODYNAMIC INACTIVATION (aPDI)

Zn(II) porphyrins (ZnP) based on water-soluble, cationic N-alkylpyridylporphyrins are promising photosensitizers for photodynamic therapy (PDT) and antimicrobial photodynamic inactivation (aPDI). In this talk we will briefly review the photophysical properties of these compounds along with the structural design (such as, charge, N-alkyl group length, and metal chelation) to tailor ZnP lipophilicity, cell uptake, tissue distribution, reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation, and overall photosensitizer efficiency. We will also overview the recent results of the UFPE, IPEN, FIOCRUZ, and UFPB joint efforts in Chemistry, Biophysics, Microbiology, Pharmaceutical Science, and Photonics to develop water-soluble ZnP-based photosensitizers (alone or conjugated with nanoparticles) as efficient aPDI strategies against leishmania, yeast, and biofilm communities.