Mohamed El-Far
Mansoura University, Egypt
Title: Green chemistry from ancient Egyptians using plants with sunlight, to recent research, using lasers and phytochemicals
Biography
Biography: Mohamed El-Far
Abstract
Ancient Egyptians were the first to adopt phototherapy in treatment of diseases. They used orally ingested plants containing light activated psoralens and sunlight to successfully treat vitiligo. Four thousand years later, psoralens – ultraviolet A (PUVA) was shown to be effective in treatment of psoriasis. Photodynamic therapy (PDT) is based upon using light, a photosensitizing drug, and molecular oxygen in combination. We will show scientific background of the origin of PDT and our use of it in diagnosis and treatment of certain types of cancers, experimentally as well as clinically. We will show and give an overview of 35 years long term team(s) experience in therapeutic potential of cancer-PDT. El-Far et al, were the first to use safer natural porphyrins as uroporphyrin and hepta-carboxylic porphyrin as a selective tumor localizing and photosensitizing agents in combination with Lasers. We were also the first to show the bio-distribution and selective in-vivo tumor localization of endogenous porphyrins induced and stimulated by a safer natural compound "5-aminolevulinic acid" (ALA) using a newly developed technique –based on green chemistry principles-for diagnosis of bladder cancer as well as treatment. We will present current state of art using cancer-PDT and Phytochemicals.