Novel organic compounds combining anti-cancer action with two-photon fluorescent cellular imaging

摘要

This study explores the feasibility of using cytotoxic derivatives of cyclohexanone/piperidone with strong two-photon absorption (TPA) simultaneously for fluorescent labeling of cancer cells and their subsequent biochemical destruction. Recent studies have shown that these compounds have an efficient two-photon excited fluorescence when pumped with infrared laser radiation. Their molecular cross-section of TPA can be as high as 30.0x10~(-48)cm~4s/photon. A cytotoxic two-photon absorbing compound will attach itself selectively to cancer cells and act as a fluorescent label of the cancer cell at harmless levels of excited infrared radiation. Also, when the process of chemical destruction of the cancer cell is over, the fluorescence changes its rate and optical spectrum. In this case, fluorescent labeling could yield more accurate information, not only on the location and distribution of cancer cells, but also on their evolution in time. Compounds combining both properties (cytotoxicity and two-photon excited fluorescence), which are now carried by different chemical agents, are expected to improve the efficiency of the cancer treatment and lower the cost.