Application of an ex ovo chicken chorioallantoic membrane model for two-photon excitation photodynamic therapy of age-related macular degeneration

Two-photon excitation photodynamic therapy (TPE-PDT) is being investigated as a clinical treatment for age-related macular degeneration (AMD). TPE-PDT has the potential to provide a more specific and therefore advantageous therapy regime than traditional one-photon excitation PDT. The highly vascularized 8 to 9-day-old chicken chorioallantoic membrane (CAM) is used to model the rapid growth of blood vessels in the wet form of AMD. Using an ex ovo model system for the CAM, ablation studies were successful in mimicking the leaky vessels found in AMD. In addition, the distribution and localization of liposomal Verteporfin were investigated in order to characterize the photosensitizing drug in vivo. Localization of the photosensitizer appears to be greatest on the upper vessel wall, which indicates a potentially strong treatment locale for TPE-PDT. (C) 2003 Society of Photo-optical Instrumentation Engineers.