Optimization of singlet oxygen production from photosensitizer‐incorporated, medically relevant hydrogels

Photodynamic therapy and photodynamic antimicrobial chemotherapy are widely used, but despite this, the relationships between fluence, wavelength of irradiation and singlet oxygen ((1)O(2)) production are poorly understood. To establish the relationships between these factors in medically relevant materials, the effect of fluence on (1)O(2) production from a tetrakis(4‐N‐methylpyridyl)porphyrin (TMPyP)‐incorporated 2‐hydroxyethyl methacrylate: methyl methacrylate: methacrylic acid (HEMA: MMA:MAA) copolymer, a total energy of 50.48 J/cm(2), was applied at varying illumination power, and times. (1)O(2) production was characterized using anthracene‐9,10‐dipropionic acid, disodium salt (ADPA) using a recently described method. Using two light sources, a white LED array and a white halogen source, the LED array was found to produce less (1)O(2) than the halogen source when the same power (over 500 − 600 nm) and time conditions were applied. Importantly, it showed that the longest wavelength Q band (590 nm) is primarily responsible for (1)O(2) generation, and that a linear relationship exists between increasing power and time and the production of singlet oxygen. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Biomed Mater Res Part B: Appl Biomater, 105B: 320–326, 2017.