Dr. Tayyaba Hasan

Photodynamic therapy (PDT) is increasingly used to treat a wide number of diseases. It involves the photoactivation of a light-responsive chemical, or photosensitizer, upon exposure to an appropriate wavelength of light.

Photoactivation initiates photochemical reactions that generate highly cytotoxic reactive oxygen species (ROS) that interact with proximal biological molecules (photosensitization). PDT exploits these interactions to bring about acute tissue necrosis to a localized area. Diseases, such as tumors, can be selectively targeted by the activating light, which is usually delivered by a laser device. The major aspects of PDT that are currently studied in Hasan's laboratory are:
(*) Site-directed PDT
(*) Mechanism-based PDT combination therapies
(*) Optical imaging