Sub Cellular Organelles-targeting Photo Dynamic Therapy (PDT)

Cancer is becoming one of the leading causes of death in the world. In photodynamic therapy (PDT), highly reactive oxygen species (ROS) is usually produced to treat cancer by interaction of light with a PDT agent usually called photosensitizer (PS) and dissolved molecular oxygen. The therapeutic properties of light have been known for thousands of years in ancient time but the photodynamic therapy (PDT) was flourished only in the last century. It portrays the damage of living tissue by three essential components like photosensitizer, visible light and oxygen. The photosensitizer is a foreign molecule and a xenobiotic in nature usually administered into the bloodstream intravenously. In some cases, it is also applied to the body surface directly. Photosensitizers are generally classified as the first, second and third generations. In cancer treatment, targeting Subcellular organelles plays an important role as an excellent therapeutic strategy. Particularly the third generation PSs are the center of attraction for selectively targeting subcellular organelles in cancer therapy. Therefore, the subcellular organelles targeted by PS are studied to be a key parameter to make something clear the mechanism of PS-induced cytotoxity against cancer cell. A better understanding of the subcellular organelles and its environments may be the ultimate goal to prevent tumor growth and metastasis permanently through PDT. The main motivation for this review is to suggest alternatives for developing PS with better efficacy and greater targeting potential.