Date of Award
4-24-2024
Document Type
Thesis
Department
Biology
First Reader
Dr. Joseph Bradshaw
Second Reader
Dr. Sara Hubbard
Third Reader
Mrs. Jessica Qualls
Abstract
This research focuses on synthesizing a new water-soluble porphyrin with a zinc core that can be used as a photosensitizing agent in photodynamic therapy. Photodynamic therapy is a process in which light is used to activate a photosensitizer to cause cell death. For this study, the porphyrin was synthesized by adding 5-amino-1-pentanol to the ZnTPPC. Once the porphyrin was synthesized it was purified using column chromatography through Sephadex LH-20 and G-50. The structure of the purified ZnTPP-5AP was then analyzed using nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy (NMR), infrared spectroscopy (IR), and ultraviolet-visible spectroscopy (UV-vis). Purity of the ZnTPP-5AP was tested using high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). The ZnTPP-5AP was then tested as a photosensitizing agent on the cancer cell line A549 using a MTT assay in the presence of red and white light. Red light was used with the zinc porphyrin to test whether its cytotoxicity was similar to white light and whether it provided deeper penetration for tumors than previous methods. For further testing of the porphyrin’s cytotoxicity under light, an MTT assay was run on the A549 cell line using a smaller range of porphyrin concentrations. Additionally, since a tumor in the body has low oxygen levels, the A549 cells were exposed to hypoxic conditions to mimic these in vivo conditions. To model this hypoxic environment, the A549 cells were kept in a hypoxic chamber prior to exposing the A549 cells to the porphyrin.
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 International License.
Recommended Citation
Johnson, Kaylee, "The Development of a New Water-Soluble Zinc Porphyrin, ZnTPP--5AP, for Photodynamic Therapy" (2024). Honors Theses. 946.
https://scholarlycommons.obu.edu/honors_theses/946
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