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Tumor homing peptides as molecular probes for cancer therapeutics, diagnostics and theranostics
A Gautam, P Kapoor, K Chaudhary
1Bioinformatics Centre, CSIRInstitute of Microbial Technology, Chandigarh-160036, India. raghava@imtech.res.in.
Abstract:
Cancer is one of the leading causes of mortality worldwide, with more than 10 million new cases each year. Despite the presence of several anticancer agents, cancer treatment is still not very effective. Main reasons behind this high mortality rate are the lack of screening tests for early diagnosis, and non-availability of tumor specific drug delivery system. Most of the current anticancer drugs are unable to differentiate between cancerous and normal cells, leading to systemic toxicity, and adverse side effects. In order to tackle this problem, a considerable progress has been made over the years to identify peptides, which specifically bind to the tumor cells, and tumor vasculature (tumor homing peptides). With the advances in phage display technology, and combinatorial libraries like one-bead one-compound library, several hundreds of tumor homing peptides, and their derivatives, which have potential to detect tumor in vivo, and deliver anticancer agents specifically to the tumor site, have been discovered. Currently, many tumor homing peptide-based therapies for cancer treatment and diagnosis are being tested in various phases of clinical trials. In this review, we have discussed the progress made so far in the identification of tumor homing peptides, and their applications in cancer therapeutics, diagnosis, and theranostics. In addition, a brief discussion on tumor homing peptide resource, and in silico designing of tumor homing peptides has also been provided.
Insights
Tumor homing peptides offer a promising solution for targeted cancer treatment by specifically binding to cancer cells. These peptides are advancing cancer therapeutics, diagnosis, and theranostics, improving drug delivery and reducing side effects.
Area of Science:
- Biomedical Engineering
- Oncology
- Molecular Biology
Background:
- Cancer remains a leading cause of global mortality, with limited early diagnostic tools and non-specific drug delivery systems contributing to high death rates.
- Current anticancer drugs often lack specificity, causing systemic toxicity and adverse side effects due to their inability to differentiate between cancerous and normal cells.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review the progress in identifying tumor homing peptides (THPs).
- To discuss the applications of THPs in cancer therapeutics, diagnosis, and theranostics.
- To provide an overview of THP resources and in silico design strategies.
Main Methods:
- Review of scientific literature on tumor homing peptides.
- Discussion of advancements in phage display and combinatorial library technologies for THP discovery.
- Analysis of current clinical trial data for THP-based therapies.
Main Results:
- Numerous THPs and their derivatives have been discovered using technologies like phage display.
- These THPs show potential for in vivo tumor detection and targeted delivery of anticancer agents.
- Many THP-based therapies are currently undergoing clinical trials for cancer treatment and diagnosis.
Conclusions:
- Tumor homing peptides represent a significant advancement in developing targeted cancer therapies.
- THPs offer improved specificity for drug delivery, potentially reducing systemic toxicity and enhancing treatment efficacy.
- The ongoing research and clinical trials highlight the therapeutic and diagnostic potential of THPs in oncology.
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