Claims
- 1. A compound of the formula
- X--CO--Y--A--R
- wherein
- X--CO-- is a C17-propionyl residue of a compound selected from the group consisting of a chlorophyll (Chl), a bacteriochlorophyll (Bchl), and a Chl and a Bchl in which the central Mg atom is substituted by a different divalent metal atom;
- Y is O, S or NH;
- A is a covalent bond or a straight or branched, saturated or unsaturated, substituted by one or more functional groups selected from the group consisting of OH, COOH, NH.sub.2, and CONH2, or unsubstituted hydrocarbon chain having from 2 to 20 carbon atoms and containing an end functional group selected from the group consisting of OH, COOH and NH.sub.2 ; or such a hydrocarbon chain interrupted by one or more heteroatoms selected from the group consisting of O, S or N, or by a phenyl ring; and
- R is a residue of a peptide or a protein that are cell-specific ligands.
- 2. The compound according to claim 1, wherein R is the residue of a peptide that is a cell-specific ligand.
- 3. The compound according to claim 2, wherein the cell-specific ligand is a peptide selected from the group comprising a melanocyte-stimulating hormone (MSH), epidermal growth factor (EGF), human chorionic gonadothropin (hCG), somatostatin and neurotensin.
- 4. The compound according to claim 3 wherein the compound is a conjugate of chlorophyll a with .alpha.-melanocyte-stimulating hormone of the sequence:
- Ser-Tyr-Ser-Met-Glu-His-Phe-Arg-Tyr-Gly-Lys-Pro-Val-NH.sub.2 SEQ ID NO: 1.
- 5. The compound according to claim 3 wherein the compound is a conjugate of bacteriochlorophyll a with .alpha.-melanocyte-stimulating hormone of the sequence:
- Ser-Tyr-Ser-Met-Glu-His-Phe-Arg-Tyr-Gly-Lys-Pro-Val-NH.sub.2 SEQ ID NO: 1.
- 6. The compound according to claim 1, wherein R is the residue of a protein that is a cell-specific ligand.
- 7. The compound according to claim 6, wherein the cell-specific protein is a tumor-specific antibody.
- 8. The compound according to claim 6, wherein the cell-specific protein is a immunoglobulin-G.
- 9. The compound according to claim 8 wherein the compound is a conjugate of bacteriochlorophyll a with immunoglobulin-G.
CROSS REFERENCE TO OTHER APPLICATIONS
This application is a continuation-in-part of 08/097,384 filed Jul. 26, 1993 now U.S. Pat. No. 5,726,169.
US Referenced Citations (1)
Number |
Name |
Date |
Kind |
5726169 |
Scherz et al. |
Mar 1998 |
|
Continuation in Parts (1)
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Number |
Date |
Country |
Parent |
097384 |
Jul 1993 |
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