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Cai X, Xu W, Ren C, Zhang L, Zhang C, Liu J, Yang C. Recent progress in quantitative analysis of self-assembled peptides. EXPLORATION (BEIJING, CHINA) 2024; 4:20230064. [PMID: 39175887 PMCID: PMC11335468 DOI: 10.1002/exp.20230064] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/01/2023] [Accepted: 10/05/2023] [Indexed: 08/24/2024]
Abstract
Self-assembled peptides have been among the important biomaterials due to its excellent biocompatibility and diverse functions. Over the past decades, substantial progress and breakthroughs have been made in designing self-assembled peptides with multifaceted biomedical applications. The techniques for quantitative analysis, including imaging-based quantitative techniques, chromatographic technique and computational approach (molecular dynamics simulation), are becoming powerful tools for exploring the structure, properties, biomedical applications, and even supramolecular assembly processes of self-assembled peptides. However, a comprehensive review concerning these quantitative techniques remains scarce. In this review, recent progress in techniques for quantitative investigation of biostability, cellular uptake, biodistribution, self-assembly behaviors of self-assembled peptide etc., are summarized. Specific applications and roles of these techniques are highlighted in detail. Finally, challenges and outlook in this field are concluded. It is believed that this review will provide technical guidance for researchers in the field of peptide-based materials and pharmaceuticals, and facilitate related research for newcomers in this field.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiaoyao Cai
- Key Laboratory of Radiopharmacokinetics for Innovative Drugs, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Tianjin Key Laboratory of Radiation Medicine and Molecular Nuclear Medicine, Institute of Radiation MedicineChinese Academy of Medical Sciences & Peking Union Medical CollegeTianjinP. R. China
| | - Wei Xu
- Department of PathologyCharacteristic Medical Center of Chinese People's Armed Police ForcesTianjinP. R. China
| | - Chunhua Ren
- Key Laboratory of Radiopharmacokinetics for Innovative Drugs, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Tianjin Key Laboratory of Radiation Medicine and Molecular Nuclear Medicine, Institute of Radiation MedicineChinese Academy of Medical Sciences & Peking Union Medical CollegeTianjinP. R. China
| | - Liping Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Radiopharmacokinetics for Innovative Drugs, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Tianjin Key Laboratory of Radiation Medicine and Molecular Nuclear Medicine, Institute of Radiation MedicineChinese Academy of Medical Sciences & Peking Union Medical CollegeTianjinP. R. China
| | - Congrou Zhang
- Metabolomics and Analytics Center, Leiden Academic Centre of Drug ResearchLeiden UniversityLeidenThe Netherlands
| | - Jianfeng Liu
- Key Laboratory of Radiopharmacokinetics for Innovative Drugs, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Tianjin Key Laboratory of Radiation Medicine and Molecular Nuclear Medicine, Institute of Radiation MedicineChinese Academy of Medical Sciences & Peking Union Medical CollegeTianjinP. R. China
| | - Cuihong Yang
- Key Laboratory of Radiopharmacokinetics for Innovative Drugs, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Tianjin Key Laboratory of Radiation Medicine and Molecular Nuclear Medicine, Institute of Radiation MedicineChinese Academy of Medical Sciences & Peking Union Medical CollegeTianjinP. R. China
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Rosa E, Di Gregorio E, Ferrauto G, Diaferia C, Gallo E, Terreno E, Accardo A. Hybrid PNA-peptide hydrogels as injectable CEST-MRI agents. J Mater Chem B 2024; 12:6371-6383. [PMID: 38864345 DOI: 10.1039/d4tb00358f] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/13/2024]
Abstract
The self-assembly of peptides and peptide analogues may be exploited to develop platforms for different biomedical applications, among which CEST-MRI (chemical exchange saturation transfer magnetic resonance imaging) represents one of the most attractive techniques to be explored as a novel metal-free contrast approach in imaging acquisitions. A lysine-containing peptide sequence (LIVAGK-NH2, named K2) was thus modified by insertion, at the N-terminus, of a peptide nucleic acid (PNA) base, leading to a primary amine suitable for the signal generation. a-K2, c-K2, g-K2 and t-K2 peptides were synthesized and characterized. The c-K2 sequence displayed gelling properties and the Watson and Crick pairing, arising from its combination with g-K2, allowed a significant increase in the mechanical responsivity of the hydrogel. These matrices were able to generate a CEST signal around 2.5 ppm from water and, after assessing their cytocompatibility on GL261 (murine glioma), TS/a (murine breast carcinoma), and 3T3-NIH (murine fibroblasts) cell lines, their capability to work as implants for in vivo detection, was proved by intratumor injection in Balb/c mice inoculated with TS/a murine breast cancer cells.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elisabetta Rosa
- Department of Pharmacy and Interuniversity Research Centre on Bioactive Peptides (CIRPeB) "Carlo Pedone", University of Naples "Federico II", Via D. Montesano 49, Naples 80131, Italy.
| | - Enza Di Gregorio
- Molecular and Preclinical Imaging Center, Department of Molecular Biotechnology and Health Sciences, University of Turin, Via Nizza 52, Turin, Italy.
| | - Giuseppe Ferrauto
- Molecular and Preclinical Imaging Center, Department of Molecular Biotechnology and Health Sciences, University of Turin, Via Nizza 52, Turin, Italy.
| | - Carlo Diaferia
- Department of Pharmacy and Interuniversity Research Centre on Bioactive Peptides (CIRPeB) "Carlo Pedone", University of Naples "Federico II", Via D. Montesano 49, Naples 80131, Italy.
| | - Enrico Gallo
- IRCCS Synlab SDN, Via Gianturco 113, Naples, 80143, Italy
| | - Enzo Terreno
- Molecular and Preclinical Imaging Center, Department of Molecular Biotechnology and Health Sciences, University of Turin, Via Nizza 52, Turin, Italy.
| | - Antonella Accardo
- Department of Pharmacy and Interuniversity Research Centre on Bioactive Peptides (CIRPeB) "Carlo Pedone", University of Naples "Federico II", Via D. Montesano 49, Naples 80131, Italy.
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Li Q, Ming R, Huang L, Zhang R. Versatile Peptide-Based Nanosystems for Photodynamic Therapy. Pharmaceutics 2024; 16:218. [PMID: 38399272 PMCID: PMC10892956 DOI: 10.3390/pharmaceutics16020218] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/28/2023] [Revised: 01/26/2024] [Accepted: 01/29/2024] [Indexed: 02/25/2024] Open
Abstract
Photodynamic therapy (PDT) has become an important therapeutic strategy because it is highly controllable, effective, and does not cause drug resistance. Moreover, precise delivery of photosensitizers to tumor lesions can greatly reduce the amount of drug administered and optimize therapeutic outcomes. As alternatives to protein antibodies, peptides have been applied as useful targeting ligands for targeted biomedical imaging, drug delivery and PDT. In addition, other functionalities of peptides such as stimuli responsiveness, self-assembly, and therapeutic activity can be integrated with photosensitizers to yield versatile peptide-based nanosystems for PDT. In this article, we start with a brief introduction to PDT and peptide-based nanosystems, followed by more detailed descriptions about the structure, property, and architecture of peptides as background information. Finally, the most recent advances in peptide-based nanosystems for PDT are emphasized and summarized according to the functionalities of peptide in the system to reveal the design and development principle in different therapeutic circumstances. We hope this review could provide useful insights and valuable reference for the development of peptide-based nanosystems for PDT.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qiuyan Li
- Institute of Engineering Medicine, School of Medical Technology, Beijing Institute of Technology, Beijing 100081, China
| | - Ruiqi Ming
- Institute of Engineering Medicine, School of Medical Technology, Beijing Institute of Technology, Beijing 100081, China
| | - Lili Huang
- Institute of Engineering Medicine, School of Medical Technology, Beijing Institute of Technology, Beijing 100081, China
| | - Ruoyu Zhang
- Institute of Engineering Medicine, School of Medical Technology, Beijing Institute of Technology, Beijing 100081, China
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Jia Q, Zhang R, Yan H, Feng Y, Sun F, Yang Z, Qiao C, Mou X, Tian J, Wang Z. An Activatable Near-Infrared Fluorescent Probe for Precise Detection of the Pulmonary Metastatic Tumors: A Traditional Molecule Having a Stunning Turn. Angew Chem Int Ed Engl 2023; 62:e202313420. [PMID: 37779105 DOI: 10.1002/anie.202313420] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/10/2023] [Revised: 09/29/2023] [Accepted: 10/01/2023] [Indexed: 10/03/2023]
Abstract
An accurate detection of lung metastasis is of great significance for making better treatment choices and improving cancer prognosis, but remains a big challenge in clinical practice. In this study, we propose a reinventing strategy to develop a pH-activatable near-infrared (NIR) fluorescent nanoprobe, pulmonary metastasis tracer (denoted as PMT), based on assembly of NIR dye IR780 and calcium phosphate (CaP). By delicately tuning the intermolecular interactions during the assembly process and dye doping content, as well as the synthetic condition of probe, the fluorescence of PMT could be finely adjusted via the tumor acidity-triggered disassembly. Notably, the selected PMT9 could sharply convert subtle pH variations into a distinct fluorescence signal to generate high fluorescence ON/OFF contrast, dramatically reducing the background signals. Benefiting from such preferable features, PMT9 is able to precisely identify not only the tumor sites in orthotopic lung cancer models but also the pulmonary metastases in mice with remarkable signal-to-background ratio (SBR). This study provides a unique strategy to turn shortcomings of traditional dye IR780 during in vivo imaging into advantages and further expand the application of fluorescent probe to image lung associated tumor lesions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qian Jia
- Lab of Molecular Imaging and Translational Medicine (MITM) Engineering Research Center of Molecular & Neuroimaging, Ministry of Education School of Life Science and Technology, Xidian University, Xi'an, Shaanxi, 710126, China
| | - Ruili Zhang
- Lab of Molecular Imaging and Translational Medicine (MITM) Engineering Research Center of Molecular & Neuroimaging, Ministry of Education School of Life Science and Technology, Xidian University, Xi'an, Shaanxi, 710126, China
| | - Haohao Yan
- Lab of Molecular Imaging and Translational Medicine (MITM) Engineering Research Center of Molecular & Neuroimaging, Ministry of Education School of Life Science and Technology, Xidian University, Xi'an, Shaanxi, 710126, China
| | - Yanbin Feng
- Lab of Molecular Imaging and Translational Medicine (MITM) Engineering Research Center of Molecular & Neuroimaging, Ministry of Education School of Life Science and Technology, Xidian University, Xi'an, Shaanxi, 710126, China
| | - Fang Sun
- Lab of Molecular Imaging and Translational Medicine (MITM) Engineering Research Center of Molecular & Neuroimaging, Ministry of Education School of Life Science and Technology, Xidian University, Xi'an, Shaanxi, 710126, China
| | - Zuo Yang
- Lab of Molecular Imaging and Translational Medicine (MITM) Engineering Research Center of Molecular & Neuroimaging, Ministry of Education School of Life Science and Technology, Xidian University, Xi'an, Shaanxi, 710126, China
| | - Chaoqiang Qiao
- Lab of Molecular Imaging and Translational Medicine (MITM) Engineering Research Center of Molecular & Neuroimaging, Ministry of Education School of Life Science and Technology, Xidian University, Xi'an, Shaanxi, 710126, China
| | - Xiaocheng Mou
- Lab of Molecular Imaging and Translational Medicine (MITM) Engineering Research Center of Molecular & Neuroimaging, Ministry of Education School of Life Science and Technology, Xidian University, Xi'an, Shaanxi, 710126, China
| | - Jie Tian
- Lab of Molecular Imaging and Translational Medicine (MITM) Engineering Research Center of Molecular & Neuroimaging, Ministry of Education School of Life Science and Technology, Xidian University, Xi'an, Shaanxi, 710126, China
| | - Zhongliang Wang
- Lab of Molecular Imaging and Translational Medicine (MITM) Engineering Research Center of Molecular & Neuroimaging, Ministry of Education School of Life Science and Technology, Xidian University, Xi'an, Shaanxi, 710126, China
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Yan Z, Liu Y, Zhao L, Hu J, Du Y, Peng X, Liu Z. In situ stimulus-responsive self-assembled nanomaterials for drug delivery and disease treatment. MATERIALS HORIZONS 2023; 10:3197-3217. [PMID: 37376926 DOI: 10.1039/d3mh00592e] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/29/2023]
Abstract
The individual motifs that respond to specific stimuli for the self-assembly of nanomaterials play important roles. In situ constructed nanomaterials are formed spontaneously without human intervention and have promising applications in bioscience. However, due to the complex physiological environment of the human body, designing stimulus-responsive self-assembled nanomaterials in vivo is a challenging problem for researchers. In this article, we discuss the self-assembly principles of various nanomaterials in response to the tissue microenvironment, cell membrane, and intracellular stimuli. We propose the applications and advantages of in situ self-assembly in drug delivery and disease diagnosis and treatment, with a focus on in situ self-assembly at the lesion site, especially in cancer. Additionally, we introduce the significance of introducing exogenous stimulation to construct self-assembly in vivo. Based on this foundation, we put forward the prospects and possible challenges in the field of in situ self-assembly. This review uncovers the relationship between the structure and properties of in situ self-assembled nanomaterials and provides new ideas for innovative drug molecular design and development to solve the problems in the targeted delivery and precision medicine.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ziling Yan
- Department of Pharmaceutical Engineering, College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Central South University, Changsha 410083, Hunan Province, P. R. China
| | - Yanfei Liu
- Department of Pharmaceutical Engineering, College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Central South University, Changsha 410083, Hunan Province, P. R. China
| | - Licheng Zhao
- Department of Pharmaceutical Engineering, College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Central South University, Changsha 410083, Hunan Province, P. R. China
| | - Jiaxin Hu
- Department of Pharmaceutics, Xiangya School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Central South University, Changsha 410013, Hunan Province, P. R. China.
| | - Yimin Du
- Department of Pharmaceutics, Xiangya School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Central South University, Changsha 410013, Hunan Province, P. R. China.
| | - Xingxing Peng
- Department of Pharmaceutics, Xiangya School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Central South University, Changsha 410013, Hunan Province, P. R. China.
| | - Zhenbao Liu
- Department of Pharmaceutics, Xiangya School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Central South University, Changsha 410013, Hunan Province, P. R. China.
- Molecular Imaging Research Center of Central South University, Changsha 410008, Hunan Province, P. R. China
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Wang J, Zhao Y, Nie G. Intelligent nanomaterials for cancer therapy: recent progresses and future possibilities. MEDICAL REVIEW (2021) 2023; 3:321-342. [PMID: 38235406 PMCID: PMC10790212 DOI: 10.1515/mr-2023-0028] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/07/2023] [Accepted: 08/15/2023] [Indexed: 01/19/2024]
Abstract
Intelligent nanomedicine is currently one of the most active frontiers in cancer therapy development. Empowered by the recent progresses of nanobiotechnology, a new generation of multifunctional nanotherapeutics and imaging platforms has remarkably improved our capability to cope with the highly heterogeneous and complicated nature of cancer. With rationally designed multifunctionality and programmable assembly of functional subunits, the in vivo behaviors of intelligent nanosystems have become increasingly tunable, making them more efficient in performing sophisticated actions in physiological and pathological microenvironments. In recent years, intelligent nanomaterial-based theranostic platforms have showed great potential in tumor-targeted delivery, biological barrier circumvention, multi-responsive tumor sensing and drug release, as well as convergence with precise medication approaches such as personalized tumor vaccines. On the other hand, the increasing system complexity of anti-cancer nanomedicines also pose significant challenges in characterization, monitoring and clinical use, requesting a more comprehensive and dynamic understanding of nano-bio interactions. This review aims to briefly summarize the recent progresses achieved by intelligent nanomaterials in tumor-targeted drug delivery, tumor immunotherapy and temporospatially specific tumor imaging, as well as important advances of our knowledge on their interaction with biological systems. In the perspective of clinical translation, we have further discussed the major possibilities provided by disease-oriented development of anti-cancer nanomaterials, highlighting the critical importance clinically-oriented system design.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jing Wang
- CAS Key Laboratory for Biomedical Effects of Nanomaterials and Nanosafety, CAS Center of Excellence in Nanoscience, National Center for Nanoscience and Technology, Beijing, China
- Center of Materials Science and Optoelectronics Engineering, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Yuliang Zhao
- CAS Key Laboratory for Biomedical Effects of Nanomaterials and Nanosafety, CAS Center of Excellence in Nanoscience, National Center for Nanoscience and Technology, Beijing, China
- GBA Research Innovation Institute for Nanotechnology, Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, China
| | - Guangjun Nie
- CAS Key Laboratory for Biomedical Effects of Nanomaterials and Nanosafety, CAS Center of Excellence in Nanoscience, National Center for Nanoscience and Technology, Beijing, China
- Center of Materials Science and Optoelectronics Engineering, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
- GBA Research Innovation Institute for Nanotechnology, Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, China
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