Evidence map›Paper›PMID 27722428›Full record

ArticlePhotochemical & photobiological sciences : Official journal of the European Photochemistry Association and the European Society for Photobiology2016

Small molecule additive enhances cell uptake of 5-aminolevulinic acid and conversion to protoporphyrin IX.

Kara M Harmatys, Anthony J Musso, Kasey J Clear, Bradley D Smith

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Photochemical & photobiological sciences : Official journal of the European Photochemistry Association and the European Society for Photobiology, 2016. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 8 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
8citing papers in PubMed
0.8field-weighted citation impact, top 23% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

8 citing papers in PubMed, 8 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Doubly protected ester prodrug of 5-aminolevulinic acid for enhanced cell uptake and photoinactivation.Photochemical & photobiological sciences : Official journal of the European Photochemistry Association and the European Society for Photobiology · 2026
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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

4 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.

Kara M HarmatysDepartment of Chemistry and Biochemistry, 236 Nieuwland Science Hall, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN 46556, USA. smith.115@nd.edu.
Anthony J MussoDepartment of Chemistry and Biochemistry, 236 Nieuwland Science Hall, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN 46556, USA. smith.115@nd.edu.
Kasey J ClearDepartment of Chemistry and Biochemistry, 236 Nieuwland Science Hall, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN 46556, USA. smith.115@nd.edu.
Bradley D SmithDepartment of Chemistry and Biochemistry, 236 Nieuwland Science Hall, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN 46556, USA. smith.115@nd.edu.
University of Notre Dame · US

Funding

PROMOTERS AND INHIBITORS OF MEMBRANE FUSIONR01GM059078 · NIGMS · UNIVERSITY OF NOTRE DAME · PI SMITH, BRADLEY D · 1999 to 2019
$5.8M
NIGMS NIH HHS R01 GM059078
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Administration of exogenous 5-aminolevulinic acid (5-ALA) to cancerous tissue leads to intracellular production of photoactive protoporphyrin IX, a biosynthetic process that enables photodynamic therapy and fluorescence-guided surgery of cancer. Cell uptake of 5-ALA is limited by its polar structure and there is a need for non-toxic chemical additives that can enhance its cell permeation. Two zinc-bis(dipicolylamine) (ZnBDPA) compounds were evaluated for their ability to promote uptake of 5-ALA into Chinese Hamster Ovary (CHO-K1) cells and produce protoporphyrin IX. One of the ZnBDPA compounds was found to be quite effective, and a systematic comparison of cells incubated with 5-ALA (100 μM) for 6 hours showed that the presence of this ZnBDPA compound (10 μM) produced 3-fold more protoporphyrin IX than cells treated with 5-ALA alone. The results of mechanistic studies suggest that the ZnBDPA compound does not interact strongly with the 5-ALA. Rather, the additive is membrane active and transiently disrupts the cell membrane, permitting 5-ALA permeation. The membrane disruption is not severe enough to induce cell toxicity or allow passage of larger macromolecules like plasmid DNA.

Indexed as

AminesAminolevulinic AcidAnimalsCell MembraneCell SurvivalCHO CellsCricetinaeCricetulusPhotochemotherapyPhotosensitizing AgentsPicolinic AcidsProtoporphyrinsZinc2,2'-dipicolylamineAminesAminolevulinic AcidPhotosensitizing AgentsPicolinic Acidsprotoporphyrin IXProtoporphyrinsZinc

Identifiers

PMID27722428
PMCPMC5093051
OpenAlexW2529580479

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceTDM
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.