Recent advances in chemotherapy-based organic small molecule theranostic reagents

Molecularly Engineered Room-Temperature Phosphorescence for Biomedical Application: From the Visible toward Second Near-Infrared Window

“…The practicability of the nanoprobe was proved by phosphorescence imaging of endogenous GSH in a tumor-bearing mouse. Stemming from the overexpressed GSH level in tumor tissues, − it can be anticipated that the GSH-controlled phosphorescence intensity should be higher in tumors than in normal tissues. In line with this deduction, tumor tissue injected with MnO 2 –Ru­(II) complexes produced strong phosphorescence corresponding with a high level of GSH (Figure b), while normal tissues only exhibited very weaker signals.…”

Recent advances in small-molecule fluorescent probes with the function of targeting cancer receptors

“…Polycoupled organic molecules and proteins are used in the construction of integrated drug platforms and tumor-targeting drug delivery systems and are also used as targeting ligands in uorescent probe design. [14][15][16] Sodium-dependent multivitamin transporter (SMVT) is a transmembrane protein responsible for translocation transport of vitamins, including biotin, through receptor-mediated endocytosis. 17,18 SMVT is overexpressed in many cancer cells, such as leukemia (L1210FR), ovarian (Ov2008, ID8), colon (Colo-26), mastocytoma (P815), lung (M109), renal (RENCA, RD0995), and breast (4T1, JC, MMT06056) cancer cell lines, and can be used as targeted receptors for cancer cells.…”

Glutathione‐triggered prodrugs: Design strategies, potential applications, and perspectives

“…7 Currently, a significant amount of studies are focused on multifunctional prodrug conjugates, which enable combinations of various capabilities such as stimulus responsiveness, targeting specificity, disease diagnosis, and multidrug conjugation, rather than merely improving the pharmacokinetic profile of parent drugs. 3,4,[8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16] Among these prodrugs, extensive research efforts have been devoted to the development of multifunctional prodrugs for cancer therapy. Compared to normal tissues, cancers exhibit distinct tumor microenvironments (TME) characterized by various aberrant biomarkers, such as overexpressed endogenous thiols (e.g., glutathione [GSH), thioredoxin [Trx], cysteine [Cys], hydrogen sulfide, etc.…”

“…19,20 As a result, such specific conditions in the TME can be utilized as triggers to develop anticancer prodrugs, allowing for targeted drug delivery and therapy possible. 8,10,11,[21][22][23][24][25] Biothiols, which contain a sulfhydryl group (-SH), are a group of biomolecules present in biological systems. [26][27][28] Due to their strong nucleophilicity, reductivity, and metal chelating ability, biothiols play critical and irreplaceable roles in various cellular activities.…”