Photoinactivation Efficiency of Cationic Porphyrin Derivatives Against Multidrug-Resistant Wound Pathogens

Abstract The photoinactivation efficiency of antimicrobial photodynamic therapy (aPDT) with cationic porphyrin derivatives (CPDs) against multidrug-resistant (MDR) bacterial strain was assessed. MDR bacterial strains including Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Escherichia coli, Acinetobacter baumannii, and Klebsiella pneumoniae were used. The CPDs named PM, PE, PN, and PL were synthesized as a photosensitizer (PS). A diode laser with a wavelength of 655 nm was used as a light source. Photoinactivation efficiency of the combinations formed with different energy density (50, 100, and 150 J/cm²) and PS concentrations (ranging from 3.125 µM and 600 µM) on each bacterial strain were evaluated. Toxicity of the aPDT combinations that showed a strong photoinactivation on the bacterial strains and dark toxicity of PSs and were evaluated on fibroblasts cells. In the aPDT experiments, survival reductions of up to 5.80 log₁₀ on E. coli, 5.90 log₁₀ on P. aeruginosa, 6.11 log₁₀ on K. pneumoniae and 6.78 log₁₀ on A. baumannii were obtained. There was an increase in the photoinactivation efficiency in parallel with increasing the energy density, and the best effect seen at an energy density of 150 J/cm2. PL did not show any toxic effect on fibroblasts. However, other PSs were toxic in fibroblasts at high concentrations. In this research, which reflected the results of in vitro experiments, aPDT provided potent photoinactivation against MDR clinical isolates. The research results lead to an in vivo wound model study of aPDT with CPD infected with an MDR clinical isolate.