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Scientists have designed a molecule capable of accumulating specifically in cancer cells and becoming toxic on contact with light. Derived from a textile dye, this new therapeutic weapon should soon be tested in humans.
The principle of photodynamic therapies
Used mainly in the treatment of certain cancers, photodynamic therapies are minimally invasive treatments. They are based on the use of photosensitizers, molecules capable of becoming excited on contact with light. They then transmit this excess energy to the dioxygen contained in the cells around them, making it toxic and causing the death of the latter. The ideal is therefore to have photosensitive molecules which will specifically accumulate in the cells to be destroyed, such as cancerous cells.
A molecule derived from a textile dye
This discovery mobilized several teams from around the world: scientists from the Chemistry Laboratory (CNRS/ENS de Lyon), the Building Blocks for Future Electronics Laboratory (CNRS/Sorbonne University/Yonsei University) in South Korea, the Moltech-Anjou laboratory (CNRS/University of Angers) and their South Korean colleagues1.
DBI was developed from a dye originally used by the textile industry and produced annually on a scale of several tons. By chemically modifying its structure, scientists have succeeded in giving it new photosensitizing properties. And double benefit, DBI has also acquired, by its structure, the ability to accumulate preferentially in cancer cells.2.
Soon to be tested in humans
This molecule, called DBI, has proven to be much more effective than the photosensitizers used in current treatments. This makes it possible to envisage use at therapeutic doses 10 to 100 times lower. This should minimize possible adverse effects on healthy tissue. This efficacy has been characterized and tested in vitro on human cells and in vivo on zebrafish embryos by their Swedish colleagues.
Additional studies are underway to determine whether this molecule could be used clinically.