Enzyme-Responsive Peptide-Based AIE Bioprobes.

Area of Science:

• Biomedical Engineering
• Molecular Imaging
• Biochemistry

Background:

• Enzymes play crucial roles in biological processes, and their dysregulation is linked to various diseases, making them valuable biomarkers.
• Aggregation-Induced Emission (AIE) bioprobes offer superior photostability and signal-to-noise ratio for detecting enzyme activity and monitoring drug release.
• Peptide-based AIE bioprobes are increasingly utilized due to their excellent biocompatibility and specificity.

Purpose of the Study:

• To review enzyme-responsive peptide-based AIE bioprobes for biomedical applications.
• To categorize aggregation strategies employed by these bioprobes.
• To discuss their utility in disease detection and image-guided therapy.

Main Methods:

• Summarizing enzyme-responsive peptide-based AIE bioprobes based on three aggregation strategies: enzyme-triggered precipitation, enzyme-catalyzed coupling, and enzyme-instructed self-assembly.
• Presenting representative examples to illustrate detection mechanisms and therapeutic applications.
• Analyzing current challenges and future directions in the field.

Main Results:

• Enzymatic hydrolysis of peptides can induce AIE molecule aggregation and facilitate drug release.
• Three distinct aggregation strategies (precipitation, coupling, self-assembly) enable enzyme activity detection.
• These bioprobes demonstrate potential for disease diagnosis and image-guided treatment.

Conclusions:

• Enzyme-responsive peptide-based AIE bioprobes represent a promising platform for sensitive enzyme detection and targeted drug delivery.
• Further research is needed to address current limitations and fully realize their clinical potential.
• These advanced bioprobes hold significant promise for the future of precision medicine.