ReviewBioengineering (Basel, Switzerland)2023
5-Aminolevulinic Acid as a Theranostic Agent for Tumor Fluorescence Imaging and Photodynamic Therapy.
Review in Bioengineering (Basel, Switzerland), 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 20 papers.
What it found
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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.
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.
Who cites it
20 citing papers in PubMed, 27 citations in OpenAlex.
- 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 · 2026Article
- Liposomal Salvianolic Acid B Enhances ALA-PDT in Oral Leucoplakia via ROS and AKT/mTOR Signalling.International dental journal · 2026Article
- 5-ALA in Oncology: Current Clinical Applications, Biological Limitations, and Emerging Translational Strategies.Biomedicines · 2026Review
- Doubly protected ester prodrug of 5-aminolevulinic acid for enhanced cell uptake and photoinactivation.Research square · 2026Article
- A Novel Fluorescence-Triggered Auditory Feedback Photosensor for Precision Lymph Node Mapping.Sensors (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- Label-free fluorescence lifetime imaging can distinguish cancer from healthy tissue in spontaneously occurring canine oral tumors.Scientific reports · 2026Article
- Sunlight PDT leveraging NIR-II nanospray: painless, hemostatic, anti-inflammatory therapy towards diabetic wound infections.National science review · 2026Article
- Dietary 5-aminolevulinic acid modulates gut microbiota, reduces oxidative stress, and enhances immune status in weanling piglets: An 8-week exploratory study.Veterinary world · 2026Article
- Optimizing resection of brain metastatic lesions with intraoperative sodium fluorescein guidance.Surgical neurology international · 2026Article
- Emerging uses of 5-aminolevulinic-acid-induced protoporphyrin IX in medicine: a review of multifaceted, ubiquitous, molecular diagnostic, therapeutic, and theranostic opportunities.Journal of biomedical optics · 2025Review
- Review
- Role of PD-1/PD-L1 signaling axis in oncogenesis and its targeting by bioactive natural compounds for cancer immunotherapy.Military Medical Research · 2024Review
- Article
- Photodynamic Therapy: A Novel Approach for Head and Neck Cancer Treatment with Focusing on Oral Cavity.Biological procedures online · 2024Review
- Article
- Current Photodynamic Therapy for Glioma Treatment: An Update.Biomedicines · 2024Review
- Targeting ABCG2 transporter to enhance 5-aminolevulinic acid for tumor visualization and photodynamic therapy.Biochemical pharmacology · 2023Review
- Photosensitizers for Photodynamic Therapy of Brain Cancers-A Review.Brain sciences · 2023Review
- Effectiveness of lapatinib for enhancing 5-aminolevulinic acid-mediated protoporphyrin IX fluorescence and photodynamic therapy in human cancer cell lines with varied ABCG2 activities.Photochemistry and photobiologyArticle
- A novel acquired resistance mechanism to 5-aminolevulinic acid-mediated photodynamic therapy with ABCG2 inhibition.Photochemistry and photobiologyArticle
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
3 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
5-Aminolevulinic acid (ALA) is a naturally occurring amino acid synthesized in all nucleated mammalian cells. As a porphyrin precursor, ALA is metabolized in the heme biosynthetic pathway to produce protoporphyrin IX (PpIX), a fluorophore and photosensitizing agent. ALA administered exogenously bypasses the rate-limit step in the pathway, resulting in PpIX accumulation in tumor tissues. Such tumor-selective PpIX disposition following ALA administration has been exploited for tumor fluorescence diagnosis and photodynamic therapy (PDT) with much success. Five ALA-based drugs have now received worldwide approval and are being used for managing very common human (pre)cancerous diseases such as actinic keratosis and basal cell carcinoma or guiding the surgery of bladder cancer and high-grade gliomas, making it the most successful drug discovery and development endeavor in PDT and photodiagnosis. The potential of ALA-induced PpIX as a fluorescent theranostic agent is, however, yet to be fully fulfilled. In this review, we would like to describe the heme biosynthesis pathway in which PpIX is produced from ALA and its derivatives, summarize current clinical applications of ALA-based drugs, and discuss strategies for enhancing ALA-induced PpIX fluorescence and PDT response. Our goal is two-fold: to highlight the successes of ALA-based drugs in clinical practice, and to stimulate the multidisciplinary collaboration that has brought the current success and will continue to usher in more landmark advances.
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Registered trials
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.