Isolation, Structures, and Mechanisms of Anti-Tumor Peptides from Marine Organisms: A Review

Anti-tumor drugs research has long been a key area of drug discovery because cancer remains one of the deadliest diseases globally, with over 10 million deaths annually and increasing resistance to conventional therapies. Therefore, there is an urgent need to explore novel therapeutic approaches and develop new anti-tumor agents with low toxicity. With over 25,000 fish species and one million marine invertebrates, the oceans represent an under-explored reservoir of bioactive compounds, where marine anti-tumor peptides exhibit unique advantages including low intrinsic toxicity, high tissue penetration, and specificity towards cancer cells that address critical limitations of chemotherapeutic drugs, such as off-target effects and multidrug resistance. However, the field currently lacks a comprehensive and systematic analyses that integrate recent advances in discovery, mechanistic elucidation, and translational challenges. This review covers key aspects such as isolation techniques, purification processes, structural characterization techniques, and diverse antitumor mechanisms. Its goal is to summarize and analyze the current state, trends, and research advancements of anti-tumor peptides isolated and extracted from marine organisms. Additionally, this review systematically compiles peptide structures with clinical potential and dissects the key obstacles in their drug development pathways. By integrating this knowledge, the review not only serves as a valuable reference for researchers but also offers critical insights into the strategic roadmap for harnessing marine peptides in the fight against cancer.