ABSTRACT
Copper-cysteamine (Cu-Cy) is a novel sensitizer that can be excited by ultraviolet (UV) light, microwave (MW), ultrasound, and X-rays to generate highly toxic reactive oxygen species (ROS) for cancer cell destruction. The purpose of this study is to present a facile method for the synthesis of Cu-Cy nanoparticles. Interestingly, we were able to decrease both the stirring and heating time by about 24 and 6 times, respectively, thus making Cu-Cy nanoparticles more economical than what was reported before. 1,4-Diazabicylo[2.2.2]octane (DABCO), a well-known singlet oxygen quencher, showed that the majority of ROS produced by Cu-Cy nanoparticles upon UV and MW exposure were singlet oxygen. Moreover, ROS generated by Cu-Cy nanoparticles upon UV and MW exposure were confirmed by a known ROS tracking agent, dihydrorhodamine 123, further serving as an additional piece of evidence that Cu-Cy is a promising ROS generating agent to destroy cancer cells as well as bacteria or viruses by a radical therapeutic approach. Additionally, for the first time, the hydroxyl radical (ËOH) produced by Cu-Cy nanoparticles upon MW activation was proved by a photoluminescence (PL) technique using coumarin as a probe molecule. Remarkably, newly synthesized nanoparticles were found to be much more effective for producing ROS and killing cancer cells, suggesting that the new method may have increased the reactivity of the Cu-Cy nanoparticles due to an overall size reduction. Overall, the new method not only reduced the synthesis time but also enhanced the effectiveness of Cu-Cy nanoparticles for photodynamic therapy.
Subject(s)
Antineoplastic Agents/pharmacology , Metal Nanoparticles/chemistry , Neoplasms/metabolism , Photosensitizing Agents/pharmacology , Reactive Oxygen Species/metabolism , Antineoplastic Agents/chemical synthesis , Antineoplastic Agents/radiation effects , Cell Line, Tumor , Copper/chemistry , Copper/radiation effects , Cysteamine/chemistry , Cysteamine/radiation effects , Humans , Hydroxyl Radical/metabolism , Metal Nanoparticles/radiation effects , Microwaves , Photosensitizing Agents/chemical synthesis , Photosensitizing Agents/radiation effects , Singlet Oxygen/metabolism , Ultraviolet RaysABSTRACT
Fluorimetric analysis of DNA unwinding, which allows measurement of DNA strand breaks in human leukocytes, has been optimized by reducing the amount of cells required for the test and by modifying the DNA alkali unwinding conditions. This permitted measurement of DNA strand-break induction in cells irradiated with low (0.5-7 Gy) or high doses (5-20 Gy) of gamma rays. Linear dose-response curves were obtained for both dose ranges. Presence of cysteamine during irradiation caused a decrease in the extent of DNA strand breaks. The kinetics of the DNA strand-break rejoining process appeared to be biphasic over the dose range of 2-20 Gy when plotted on a linear vs linear axis (percentage of damage as a function of time). Since the rate of disappearance of damaged DNA was similar for any given dose and for all postirradiation incubation times tested, we have expressed the extent of repair after a given postirradiation incubation as the ratio of the slopes of the regression lines obtained from incubated and nonincubated cells. Leukocytes from 25 healthy donors were analyzed to determine an average value for controls. No difference in the level of DNA strand breaks and the rate of repair of these breaks was observed between leukocytes from three ataxia telangiectasia patients and those from normal donors.
Subject(s)
Ataxia Telangiectasia/genetics , DNA Repair , DNA/analysis , Leukocytes/radiation effects , Ataxia Telangiectasia/blood , Cell Count , Cysteamine/radiation effects , Dose-Response Relationship, Radiation , Ethidium/pharmacology , Fluorometry , Gamma Rays , Humans , In Vitro Techniques , MathematicsABSTRACT
The photoreactions of phosphorothioate and cysteamine-S-phosphate were investigated. On irradiation of phosphorothioate a marked change in absorption spectrum was observed. The product migrated in high voltage electrophoresis, with different mobility from that of phosphorothioate and its dimer, or inorganic orthophosphate. It contained phosphate and sulfur in a ratio of 2: 1, without reducing properties. Therefore it was suggested that the product is either pyrothiophosphate, or a cyclic compound, with similar composition. On irradiation of phosphorothioate in the presence of potential phosphoryl group acceptor, such as glucose or galactose, 25-40% of the phosphoryl group was transferred. The formation of glucose 6-phosphate, or galactose 6-phosphate was observed. The photolysis of cysteamine-S-phosphate gave cysteamine, inorganic orthophospate and taurine. Under the same conditions of irradiation, inorganic orthophosphate or aminoethanol-O-phosphate were found to be stable.
