Hum. Reprod. Advance Access originally published online on February 19, 2008
Human Reproduction 2008 23(7):1491-1498; doi:10.1093/humrep/den039
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Photodynamic ablation of a selected rat embryo: a model for the treatment of extrauterine pregnancy
1 Department of Biological Regulation, Weizmann Institute of Science, 76100 Rehovot, Israel 2 Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, E.Wolfson Medical Center, 58100 Holon, Israel 3 Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel-Aviv University, Tel-Aviv, 69978 Tel-Aviv, Israel 4 Department of Plant Sciences, Weizmann Institute of Science, 76100 Rehovot, Israel
5 Correspondence address. Fax: +972-8-9342813; E-mail: yoram.salomon{at}weizmann.ac.il
BACKGROUND: To test the feasibility of photodynamic therapy (PDT)-based ablation of rat embryos as a model for PDT of extrauterine pregnancy (EUP) in humans.
METHODS: A controlled pre-clinical study. Selected rat embryos [one per litter, n = 30, embryonic day 14 (E14)] were subjected to placental injection of a Palladium-bacteriochlorophyll derivative and illuminated to achieve selective photo-ablation. Histopathology studies were performed 48 h after treatment (E16). Parturition (E21) and breeding (
12 weeks) after treatment were also evaluated.
RESULTS: Using direct placental injection, nearly 80% of the treated rat embryos were selectively photo-ablated, leaving the remaining litter unharmed to achieve normal parturition. Treated animals retained fertility and normally implanted in both treated and untreated uterine horns attesting to the confined toxicity inherent to this approach.
CONCLUSIONS: Although requiring respective adaptation to clinical application in terms of treatment protocols and designated hardware, photodynamic interventions using novel bacteriochlorophyll-based photosensitizers may prove applicable to treatment of EUP, as well as other gynecological pathologies and malignancies in a safe, minimally invasive manner.
Key words: extrauterine pregnancy/photodynamic therapy/fertility preservation/rat
Submitted on September 17, 2007; resubmitted on January 13, 2008; accepted on January 26, 2008.