TY - JOUR
T1 - Antimicrobial photodynamic therapy
T2 - An effective alternative approach to control fungal infections
AU - Baltazar, Ludmila M.
AU - Ray, Anjana
AU - Santos, Daniel A.
AU - Cisalpino, Patrícia S.
AU - Friedman, Adam J.
AU - Nosanchuk, Joshua D.
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2015 Baltazar, Ray, Santos, Cisalpino, Friedman and Nosanchuk.
PY - 2015
Y1 - 2015
N2 - Skin mycoses are caused mainly by dermatophytes, which are fungal species that primarily infect areas rich in keratin such as hair, nails, and skin. Significantly, there are increasing rates of antimicrobial resistance among dermatophytes, especially for Trichophyton rubrum, the most frequent etiologic agent worldwide. Hence, investigators have been developing new therapeutic approaches, including photodynamic treatment. Photodynamic therapy (PDT) utilizes a photosensitive substance activated by a light source of a specific wavelength. The photoactivation induces cascades of photochemicals and photobiological events that cause irreversible changes in the exposed cells. Although photodynamic approaches are well established experimentally for the treatment of certain cutaneous infections, there is limited information about its mechanism of action for specific pathogens as well as the risks to healthy tissues. In this work, we have conducted a comprehensive review of the current knowledge of PDT as it specifically applies to fungal diseases. The data to date suggests that photodynamic treatment approaches hold great promise for combating certain fungal pathogens, particularly dermatophytes.
AB - Skin mycoses are caused mainly by dermatophytes, which are fungal species that primarily infect areas rich in keratin such as hair, nails, and skin. Significantly, there are increasing rates of antimicrobial resistance among dermatophytes, especially for Trichophyton rubrum, the most frequent etiologic agent worldwide. Hence, investigators have been developing new therapeutic approaches, including photodynamic treatment. Photodynamic therapy (PDT) utilizes a photosensitive substance activated by a light source of a specific wavelength. The photoactivation induces cascades of photochemicals and photobiological events that cause irreversible changes in the exposed cells. Although photodynamic approaches are well established experimentally for the treatment of certain cutaneous infections, there is limited information about its mechanism of action for specific pathogens as well as the risks to healthy tissues. In this work, we have conducted a comprehensive review of the current knowledge of PDT as it specifically applies to fungal diseases. The data to date suggests that photodynamic treatment approaches hold great promise for combating certain fungal pathogens, particularly dermatophytes.
KW - Fungal cells
KW - Light source
KW - Photochemicals and photobiological events
KW - Photodynamic inhibition
KW - Photosensitizer
KW - Treatment
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U2 - 10.3389/fmicb.2015.00202
DO - 10.3389/fmicb.2015.00202
M3 - Review article
AN - SCOPUS:84927168134
SN - 1664-302X
VL - 6
JO - Frontiers in Microbiology
JF - Frontiers in Microbiology
IS - MAR
M1 - 202
ER -