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Zhao J, Li X, Ma T, Chang B, Zhang B, Fang J. Glutathione-triggered prodrugs: Design strategies, potential applications, and perspectives. Med Res Rev 2024; 44:1013-1054. [PMID: 38140851 DOI: 10.1002/med.22007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/17/2023] [Revised: 11/20/2023] [Accepted: 12/02/2023] [Indexed: 12/24/2023]
Abstract
The burgeoning prodrug strategy offers a promising avenue toward improving the efficacy and specificity of cytotoxic drugs. Elevated intracellular levels of glutathione (GSH) have been regarded as a hallmark of tumor cells and characteristic feature of the tumor microenvironment. Considering the pivotal involvement of elevated GSH in the tumorigenic process, a diverse repertoire of GSH-triggered prodrugs has been developed for cancer therapy, facilitating the attenuation of deleterious side effects associated with conventional chemotherapeutic agents and/or the attainment of more efficacious therapeutic outcomes. These prodrug formulations encompass a spectrum of architectures, spanning from small molecules to polymer-based and organic-inorganic nanomaterial constructs. Although the GSH-triggered prodrugs have been gaining increasing interests, a comprehensive review of the advancements made in the field is still lacking. To fill the existing lacuna, this review undertakes a retrospective analysis of noteworthy research endeavors, based on a categorization of these molecules by their diverse recognition units (i.e., disulfides, diselenides, Michael acceptors, and sulfonamides/sulfonates). This review also focuses on explaining the distinct benefits of employing various chemical architecture strategies in the design of these prodrug agents. Furthermore, we highlight the potential for synergistic functionality by incorporating multiple-targeting conjugates, theranostic entities, and combinational treatment modalities, all of which rely on the GSH-triggering. Overall, an extensive overview of the emerging field is presented in this review, highlighting the obstacles and opportunities that lie ahead. Our overarching goal is to furnish methodological guidance for the development of more efficacious GSH-triggered prodrugs in the future. By assessing the pros and cons of current GSH-triggered prodrugs, we expect that this review will be a handful reference for prodrug design, and would provide a guidance for improving the properties of prodrugs and discovering novel trigger scaffolds for constructing GSH-triggered prodrugs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jintao Zhao
- School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Nanjing University of Science and Technology, Nanjing, Jiangsu, China
- State Key Laboratory of Applied Organic Chemistry, College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, Gansu, China
| | - Xinming Li
- School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Nanjing University of Science and Technology, Nanjing, Jiangsu, China
| | - Tao Ma
- State Key Laboratory of Applied Organic Chemistry, College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, Gansu, China
| | - Bingbing Chang
- State Key Laboratory of Applied Organic Chemistry, College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, Gansu, China
| | - Baoxin Zhang
- State Key Laboratory of Applied Organic Chemistry, College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, Gansu, China
| | - Jianguo Fang
- School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Nanjing University of Science and Technology, Nanjing, Jiangsu, China
- State Key Laboratory of Applied Organic Chemistry, College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, Gansu, China
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2
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Sharma A, Verwilst P, Li M, Ma D, Singh N, Yoo J, Kim Y, Yang Y, Zhu JH, Huang H, Hu XL, He XP, Zeng L, James TD, Peng X, Sessler JL, Kim JS. Theranostic Fluorescent Probes. Chem Rev 2024; 124:2699-2804. [PMID: 38422393 PMCID: PMC11132561 DOI: 10.1021/acs.chemrev.3c00778] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/03/2023] [Revised: 01/31/2024] [Accepted: 02/08/2024] [Indexed: 03/02/2024]
Abstract
The ability to gain spatiotemporal information, and in some cases achieve spatiotemporal control, in the context of drug delivery makes theranostic fluorescent probes an attractive and intensely investigated research topic. This interest is reflected in the steep rise in publications on the topic that have appeared over the past decade. Theranostic fluorescent probes, in their various incarnations, generally comprise a fluorophore linked to a masked drug, in which the drug is released as the result of certain stimuli, with both intrinsic and extrinsic stimuli being reported. This release is then signaled by the emergence of a fluorescent signal. Importantly, the use of appropriate fluorophores has enabled not only this emerging fluorescence as a spatiotemporal marker for drug delivery but also has provided modalities useful in photodynamic, photothermal, and sonodynamic therapeutic applications. In this review we highlight recent work on theranostic fluorescent probes with a particular focus on probes that are activated in tumor microenvironments. We also summarize efforts to develop probes for other applications, such as neurodegenerative diseases and antibacterials. This review celebrates the diversity of designs reported to date, from discrete small-molecule systems to nanomaterials. Our aim is to provide insights into the potential clinical impact of this still-emerging research direction.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amit Sharma
- Amity
School of Chemical Sciences, Amity University
Punjab, Sector 82A, Mohali 140 306, India
| | - Peter Verwilst
- Rega
Institute for Medical Research, Medicinal Chemistry, KU Leuven, Herestraat 49, Box 1041, 3000 Leuven, Belgium
| | - Mingle Li
- College
of Materials Science and Engineering, Shenzhen
University, Shenzhen 518060, China
| | - Dandan Ma
- College
of Materials Science and Engineering, Shenzhen
University, Shenzhen 518060, China
- College
of Physics and Optoelectronic Engineering, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen 518060, China
| | - Nem Singh
- Department
of Chemistry, Korea University, Seoul 02841, Korea
| | - Jiyoung Yoo
- Department
of Chemistry, Korea University, Seoul 02841, Korea
| | - Yujin Kim
- Department
of Chemistry, Korea University, Seoul 02841, Korea
| | - Ying Yang
- School of
Light Industry and Food Engineering, Guangxi
University, Nanning, Guangxi 530004, China
| | - Jing-Hui Zhu
- College
of Materials Science and Engineering, Shenzhen
University, Shenzhen 518060, China
- College
of Physics and Optoelectronic Engineering, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen 518060, China
| | - Haiqiao Huang
- College
of Materials Science and Engineering, Shenzhen
University, Shenzhen 518060, China
- College
of Physics and Optoelectronic Engineering, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen 518060, China
| | - Xi-Le Hu
- Key
Laboratory for Advanced Materials and Joint International Research
Laboratory of Precision Chemistry and Molecular Engineering, Feringa
Nobel Prize Scientist Joint Research Center, School of Chemistry and
Molecular Engineering, East China University
of Science and Technology, 130 Meilong Road, Shanghai 200237, China
| | - Xiao-Peng He
- Key
Laboratory for Advanced Materials and Joint International Research
Laboratory of Precision Chemistry and Molecular Engineering, Feringa
Nobel Prize Scientist Joint Research Center, School of Chemistry and
Molecular Engineering, East China University
of Science and Technology, 130 Meilong Road, Shanghai 200237, China
- National
Center for Liver Cancer, the International Cooperation Laboratory
on Signal Transduction, Eastern Hepatobiliary
Surgery Hospital, Shanghai 200438, China
| | - Lintao Zeng
- School of
Light Industry and Food Engineering, Guangxi
University, Nanning, Guangxi 530004, China
| | - Tony D. James
- Department
of Chemistry, University of Bath, Bath BA2 7AY, United Kingdom
- School
of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Henan
Normal University, Xinxiang 453007, China
| | - Xiaojun Peng
- College
of Materials Science and Engineering, Shenzhen
University, Shenzhen 518060, China
- State
Key Laboratory of Fine Chemicals, Dalian
University of Technology, Dalian 116024, China
| | - Jonathan L. Sessler
- Department
of Chemistry, The University of Texas at
Austin, Texas 78712-1224, United
States
| | - Jong Seung Kim
- Department
of Chemistry, Korea University, Seoul 02841, Korea
- TheranoChem Incorporation, Seongbuk-gu, Seoul 02841, Korea
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3
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Đorđević S, Medel M, Hillaert J, Masiá E, Conejos-Sánchez I, Vicent MJ. Critical Design Strategies Supporting Optimized Drug Release from Polymer-Drug Conjugates. SMALL (WEINHEIM AN DER BERGSTRASSE, GERMANY) 2024; 20:e2303157. [PMID: 37752780 DOI: 10.1002/smll.202303157] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/14/2023] [Revised: 08/19/2023] [Indexed: 09/28/2023]
Abstract
The importance of an adequate linking moiety design that allows controlled drug(s) release at the desired site of action is extensively studied for polymer-drug conjugates (PDCs). Redox-responsive self-immolative linkers bearing disulfide moieties (SS-SIL) represent a powerful strategy for intracellular drug delivery; however, the influence of drug structural features and linker-associated spacers on release kinetics remains relatively unexplored. The influence of drug/spacer chemical structure and the chemical group available for conjugation on drug release and the biological effect of resultant PDCs is evaluated. A "design of experiments" tool is implemented to develop a liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry method to perform the comprehensive characterization required for this systematic study. The obtained fit-for-purpose analytical protocol enables the quantification of low drug concentrations in drug release studies and the elucidation of metabolite presence. and provides the first data that clarifies how drug structural features influence the drug release from SS-SIL and demonstrates the non-universal nature of the SS-SIL. The importance of rigorous linker characterization in understanding structure-function correlations between linkers, drug chemical functionalities, and in vitro release kinetics from a rationally-designed polymer-drug nanoconjugate, a critical strategic crafting methodology that should remain under consideration when using a reductive environment as an endogenous drug release trigger.
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Affiliation(s)
- Snežana Đorđević
- Polymer Therapeutics Laboratory, Príncipe Felipe Research Center (CIPF) and CIBERONC, Eduardo Primo Yúfera 3, Valencia, 46012, Spain
| | - María Medel
- Polymer Therapeutics Laboratory, Príncipe Felipe Research Center (CIPF) and CIBERONC, Eduardo Primo Yúfera 3, Valencia, 46012, Spain
| | - Justine Hillaert
- Polymer Therapeutics Laboratory, Príncipe Felipe Research Center (CIPF) and CIBERONC, Eduardo Primo Yúfera 3, Valencia, 46012, Spain
| | - Esther Masiá
- Polymer Therapeutics Laboratory, Príncipe Felipe Research Center (CIPF) and CIBERONC, Eduardo Primo Yúfera 3, Valencia, 46012, Spain
- Screening Platform, Príncipe Felipe Research Center (CIPF), Eduardo Primo Yúfera 3, Valencia, 46012, Spain
| | - Inmaculada Conejos-Sánchez
- Polymer Therapeutics Laboratory, Príncipe Felipe Research Center (CIPF) and CIBERONC, Eduardo Primo Yúfera 3, Valencia, 46012, Spain
| | - María J Vicent
- Polymer Therapeutics Laboratory, Príncipe Felipe Research Center (CIPF) and CIBERONC, Eduardo Primo Yúfera 3, Valencia, 46012, Spain
- Screening Platform, Príncipe Felipe Research Center (CIPF), Eduardo Primo Yúfera 3, Valencia, 46012, Spain
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Blevins DJ, Nazir R, Hossein Dabiri SM, Akbari M, Wulff JE. The effects of cell culture conditions on premature hydrolysis of traceless ester-linked disulfide linkers. J Drug Deliv Sci Technol 2022. [DOI: 10.1016/j.jddst.2022.103950] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
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5
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Xue Y, Bai H, Peng B, Fang B, Baell J, Li L, Huang W, Voelcker NH. Stimulus-cleavable chemistry in the field of controlled drug delivery. Chem Soc Rev 2021; 50:4872-4931. [DOI: 10.1039/d0cs01061h] [Citation(s) in RCA: 39] [Impact Index Per Article: 13.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
Abstract
This review comprehensively summarises stimulus-cleavable linkers from various research areas and their cleavage mechanisms, thus provides an insightful guideline to extend their potential applications to controlled drug release from nanomaterials.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yufei Xue
- Frontiers Science Center for Flexible Electronics
- Xi’an Institute of Flexible Electronics (IFE) and Xi’an Institute of Biomedical Materials & Engineering
- Northwestern Polytechnical University
- 127 West Youyi Road
- Xi'an 710072
| | - Hua Bai
- Frontiers Science Center for Flexible Electronics
- Xi’an Institute of Flexible Electronics (IFE) and Xi’an Institute of Biomedical Materials & Engineering
- Northwestern Polytechnical University
- 127 West Youyi Road
- Xi'an 710072
| | - Bo Peng
- Frontiers Science Center for Flexible Electronics
- Xi’an Institute of Flexible Electronics (IFE) and Xi’an Institute of Biomedical Materials & Engineering
- Northwestern Polytechnical University
- 127 West Youyi Road
- Xi'an 710072
| | - Bin Fang
- Frontiers Science Center for Flexible Electronics
- Xi’an Institute of Flexible Electronics (IFE) and Xi’an Institute of Biomedical Materials & Engineering
- Northwestern Polytechnical University
- 127 West Youyi Road
- Xi'an 710072
| | - Jonathan Baell
- Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO), Clayton
- Victoria 3168
- Australia
| | - Lin Li
- Frontiers Science Center for Flexible Electronics
- Xi’an Institute of Flexible Electronics (IFE) and Xi’an Institute of Biomedical Materials & Engineering
- Northwestern Polytechnical University
- 127 West Youyi Road
- Xi'an 710072
| | - Wei Huang
- Frontiers Science Center for Flexible Electronics
- Xi’an Institute of Flexible Electronics (IFE) and Xi’an Institute of Biomedical Materials & Engineering
- Northwestern Polytechnical University
- 127 West Youyi Road
- Xi'an 710072
| | - Nicolas Hans Voelcker
- Frontiers Science Center for Flexible Electronics
- Xi’an Institute of Flexible Electronics (IFE) and Xi’an Institute of Biomedical Materials & Engineering
- Northwestern Polytechnical University
- 127 West Youyi Road
- Xi'an 710072
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6
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Liu G, Lovell JF, Zhang L, Zhang Y. Stimulus-Responsive Nanomedicines for Disease Diagnosis and Treatment. Int J Mol Sci 2020; 21:E6380. [PMID: 32887466 PMCID: PMC7504550 DOI: 10.3390/ijms21176380] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/12/2020] [Revised: 08/26/2020] [Accepted: 08/31/2020] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Stimulus-responsive drug delivery systems generally aim to release the active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) in response to specific conditions and have recently been explored for disease treatments. These approaches can also be extended to molecular imaging to report on disease diagnosis and management. The stimuli used for activation are based on differences between the environment of the diseased or targeted sites, and normal tissues. Endogenous stimuli include pH, redox reactions, enzymatic activity, temperature and others. Exogenous site-specific stimuli include the use of magnetic fields, light, ultrasound and others. These endogenous or exogenous stimuli lead to structural changes or cleavage of the cargo carrier, leading to release of the API. A wide variety of stimulus-responsive systems have been developed-responsive to both a single stimulus or multiple stimuli-and represent a theranostic tool for disease treatment. In this review, stimuli commonly used in the development of theranostic nanoplatforms are enumerated. An emphasis on chemical structure and property relationships is provided, aiming to focus on insights for the design of stimulus-responsive delivery systems. Several examples of theranostic applications of these stimulus-responsive nanomedicines are discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gengqi Liu
- School of Chemical Engineering and Technology, Tianjin University, Tianjin 300350, China;
- Key Laboratory of Systems Bioengineering (Ministry of Education), Tianjin University, Tianjin 300072, China
| | - Jonathan F. Lovell
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, The State University of New York at Buffalo, Buffalo, NY 14260, USA;
| | - Lei Zhang
- School of Chemical Engineering and Technology, Tianjin University, Tianjin 300350, China;
- Key Laboratory of Systems Bioengineering (Ministry of Education), Tianjin University, Tianjin 300072, China
| | - Yumiao Zhang
- School of Chemical Engineering and Technology, Tianjin University, Tianjin 300350, China;
- Key Laboratory of Systems Bioengineering (Ministry of Education), Tianjin University, Tianjin 300072, China
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7
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Wang Q, Guan J, Wan J, Li Z. Disulfide based prodrugs for cancer therapy. RSC Adv 2020; 10:24397-24409. [PMID: 35516223 PMCID: PMC9055211 DOI: 10.1039/d0ra04155f] [Citation(s) in RCA: 38] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/09/2020] [Accepted: 06/19/2020] [Indexed: 12/26/2022] Open
Abstract
Advances in the tumor microenvironment have facilitated the development of novel anticancer drugs and delivery vehicles for improved therapeutic efficacy and decreased side effects. Disulfide bonds with unique chemical and biophysical properties can be used as cleavable linkers for the delivery of chemotherapeutic drugs. Accordingly, small molecule-, peptide-, polymer- and protein-based multifunctional prodrugs bearing cleavable disulfide bonds are well accepted in clinical settings. Herein, we first briefly introduce a number of prodrugs and divide them into three categories, namely, disulfide-containing small molecule conjugates, disulfide-containing cytotoxic agent–targeted fluorescent agent conjugates, and disulfide-containing cytotoxic agent–macromolecule conjugates. Then, we discuss the complex redox environment and the underlying mechanism of free drug release from disulfide based prodrugs in in vivo settings. Based on these insights, we analyze the impact of electronics, steric hindrance and substituent position of the disulfide linker on the extracellular stability and intracellular cleavage rate of disulfide containing prodrugs. Current challenges and future opportunities for the disulfide linker are provided at the end. This review summarizes the progress in disulfide linker technology to balance extracellular stability and intracellular cleavage for optimized disulfide-containing prodrugs.![]()
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Affiliation(s)
- Qiang Wang
- National Engineering Research Center for Nanomedicine
- College of Life Science and Technology
- Huazhong University of Science and Technology
- Wuhan
- China
| | - Jiankun Guan
- National Engineering Research Center for Nanomedicine
- College of Life Science and Technology
- Huazhong University of Science and Technology
- Wuhan
- China
| | - Jiangling Wan
- National Engineering Research Center for Nanomedicine
- College of Life Science and Technology
- Huazhong University of Science and Technology
- Wuhan
- China
| | - Zifu Li
- National Engineering Research Center for Nanomedicine
- College of Life Science and Technology
- Huazhong University of Science and Technology
- Wuhan
- China
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8
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Deng Z, Hu J, Liu S. Disulfide-Based Self-Immolative Linkers and Functional Bioconjugates for Biological Applications. Macromol Rapid Commun 2019; 41:e1900531. [PMID: 31755619 DOI: 10.1002/marc.201900531] [Citation(s) in RCA: 47] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/03/2019] [Revised: 11/05/2019] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
It is of vital importance to reversibly mask and selectively activate bioactive agents for advanced therapeutic and diagnostic purposes, aiming to efficiently suppress background interferences and attenuate systemic toxicity. This strategy has been involved in diverse applications spanning from chemical/biological sensors and diagnostics to drug delivery nanocarriers. Among these, redox-responsive disulfide linkages have been extensively utilized by taking advantage of extracellular and intracellular glutathione (GSH) gradients. However, direct conjugation of cleavable triggers to bioactive agents through disulfide bonds suffers from bulky steric hindrance and limited choice of trigger-drug combinations. Fortunately, the emergence of disulfide self-immolative linkers (DSILs) provides a general and robust strategy to not only mask various bioactive agents through the formation of dynamic disulfide linkages but also make it possible to be selectively activated upon disulfide cleavage in the reductive cytoplasmic milieu. In this review, recent developments in DSILs are focused with special attention on emerging chemical design strategies and functional applications in the biomedical field.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhengyu Deng
- CAS Key Laboratory of Soft Matter Chemistry, Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale, Department of Polymer Science and Engineering, University of Science and Technology of China, 96 Jinzhai Road, Hefei, 230026, China
| | - Jinming Hu
- CAS Key Laboratory of Soft Matter Chemistry, Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale, Department of Polymer Science and Engineering, University of Science and Technology of China, 96 Jinzhai Road, Hefei, 230026, China
| | - Shiyong Liu
- CAS Key Laboratory of Soft Matter Chemistry, Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale, Department of Polymer Science and Engineering, University of Science and Technology of China, 96 Jinzhai Road, Hefei, 230026, China
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