Design and Photophysical Engineering of Functional Organic Luminogens for Precision Cancer Theranostics

Area of Science:

• Biomaterials Science
• Nanotechnology
• Oncology

Background:

• Cancer theranostics require innovative strategies integrating diagnostics and therapeutics.
• Functional organic luminogens are emerging as versatile platforms for cancer theranostics.
• Small-molecule luminogens offer advantages over conventional nanoparticles, including defined structures and improved biocompatibility.

Purpose of the Study:

• To review recent advances in the rational design of organic luminogens for next-generation cancer theranostics.
• To emphasize structure-property-function relationships in various organic luminogen systems.
• To discuss molecular design strategies for enhanced imaging and therapeutic efficacy.

Main Methods:

• Focus on aggregation-induced emission (AIE) small molecules, thermally activated delayed fluorescence (TADF)-based probes, polymer nanostructures, organic co-crystals, and charge-transfer (CT) assemblies.
• Analysis of molecular design strategies regulating excited-state dynamics, aggregation, charge transfer, and microenvironment responsiveness.
• Discussion of applications in near-infrared (NIR) and NIR-II imaging, photodynamic therapy, photothermal therapy, and multimodal treatments.

Main Results:

• Small-molecule luminogens demonstrate potential for deeper tumor penetration and reduced toxicity compared to conventional nanoparticles.
• Key design strategies enable tailored control over luminogen properties for specific theranostic applications.
• Emerging systems show promise for synergistic multimodal cancer treatments.

Conclusions:

• Organic luminogens represent a promising frontier in precision cancer theranostics.
• Addressing challenges in specificity, biosafety, and translation is crucial for clinical implementation.
• Future directions include data-driven and AI-assisted molecular discovery for optimized biomaterial development.