Combined cyclodextrins and porphyrinoid derivatives in drug delivery systems: Developments and perspectives

Tetrapyrrolic macrocycles, particularly porphyrins and metalloporphyrins, exhibit distinctive photophysical and redox properties that make them valuable as photosensitizers and functional platforms in biomedicine. In recent years, their supramolecular association with cyclodextrins (CDs) has emerged as an effective strategy to enhance aqueous solubility, reduce aggregation, improve photodynamic performance, and enable targeted or stimuli-responsive delivery. This mini-review summarizes the current advances in CD-porphyrin hybrid systems applied to PDT, antimicrobial treatments, and drug delivery, highlighting how CD inclusion modulates stability, singlet-oxygen generation, and biological selectivity. Despite substantial progress, translation to clinical use remains limited, and future development is expected to focus on multifunctional nanoplatforms, CD-engineered porphyrins with tunable release profiles, and hybrid systems integrating imaging, therapy, and triggered activation. We also outline the main challenges ahead, including biocompatibility, pharmacokinetics, and scalable synthesis, offering perspectives to guide the next generation of CD-porphyrin biomedical technologies.