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Nanotechnology-based photodynamic therapy for neovascular disease using a supramolecular nanocarrier loaded with a dendritic photosensitizer.

Ideta R, Tasaka F, Jang WD, Nishiyama N, Zhang GD, Harada A, Yanagi Y, Tamaki Y, Aida T, Kataoka K

Department of Ophthalmology, Graduate School of Medicine, The University of Tokyo, 7-3-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-8655, Japan.

Photodynamic therapy (PDT) for exudative age-related macular degeneration (AMD) was evaluated using a supramolecular nanomedical device, that is, a novel dendritic photosensitizer (DP) encapsulated by a polymeric micelle formulation. The characteristic dendritic structure of the DP prevents aggregation of its core sensitizer, thereby inducing a highly effective photochemical reaction. With its highly selective accumulation on choroidal neovascularization (CNV) lesions, this treatment resulted in a remarkably efficacious CNV occlusion with minimal unfavorable phototoxicity.

Published 14 December 2005 in Nano Lett, 5(12): 2426-31.
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