Nanoemulsion with porphyrin shell

A nanoparticle comprising an outer shell comprising a porphyrin salt, an expanded porphyrin salt or an analog of porphyrin salt, around an inner liquid oil phase core, wherein

• the ratio of porphyrin (P) to oil (O) volume (mol/L) is equal to or greater than 2:20;
• and
• the porphyrin salt is a salt of a hematoporphyrin, a protoporphyrin, a pyropheophorbide a, a bacteriochlorophyll, a chlorophyll a, a tetraphenylporphyrin, a benzoporphyrin, a verpetorfin, a chlorin, a benzochlorin, a naphthochlorins, a rhodin, a keto chlorin, an azachlorin, a bacteriochlorin, a tolyporphyrin, a benzobacteriochlorin, a deuteroporphyrin, a pemptoporphyrin a phylloerythrin, a porphine, or purpurin 18;
• the expanded porphyrin salt is a salt of a texaphyrin, a sapphyrin or a hexaphyrin;
• the analog of porphyrin salt is a salt of a porphycene, an inverted porphyrin, a phthalocyanine, a naphthalocyanine, a BODIPY dye, or a cyanine dye;
• zinc (II) phthalocyanine mono-sodium salt;
• aza-BODIPY mono-sodium salt;
• or ICG cyanine salt;
• the porphyrin salt is amphiphilic and encapsulates and stabilizes the liquid oil phase core to form a spherical nanoparticle.