Peptide modulators of cell migration: Overview, applications and future development
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Updated: Aug 6, 2025

A Quantitative Evaluation of Cell Migration by the Phagokinetic Track Motility Assay
Published on: December 4, 2012
Jasmin Gattringer1, Christian W Gruber1, Roland Hellinger1
1Medical University of Vienna, Center for Physiology and Pharmacology, Schwarzspanierstrasse 17, A-1090 Vienna, Austria.
Abstract:
Cell migration is a key physiological process in the development and homeostasis of multicellular organisms; errors in this complex system can trigger the development of cancer or inflammatory disorders. Therefore, modulating cell migration provides opportunities for drug discovery. Peptides are gaining importance on the global therapeutics market, given their unique properties compared with established small-molecule drugs or biologics. In this review, we identified over 470 peptides modulating cell migration and analyzed their characteristics. Over 95% of these peptides are in the discovery or preclinical stage, because the transition of peptide hits into drug leads often results in a bottleneck in the development process. We summarize chemical strategies in (pre-)clinical development to enhance drug-like properties of bioactive peptides.
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