Emerging self-assembling peptide nanomaterial for anti-cancer therapy

Abstract

Recently it is mainly focused on anti-tumor comprehensive treatments like finding target tumor cells or activating immune cells to inhibit tumor recurrence and metastasis. At present, chemotherapy and molecular-targeted drugs can inhibit tumor cell growth to a certain extent. However, multi-drug resistance and immune escape often make it difficult for new drugs to achieve expected effects. Peptide hydrogel nanoparticles is a new type of biological material with functional peptide chains as the core and self-assembling peptide (SAP) as the framework. It has a variety of significant biological functions, including effective local inflammation suppression and non-drug-resistant cell killing. Besides, it can induce immune activation more persistently in an adjuvant independent manner when compared with simple peptides. Thus, SAP nanomaterial has great potential in regulating cell physiological functions, drug delivery and sensitization, vaccine design and immunotherapy. Not only that, it is also a potential way to focus on some specific proteins and cells through peptides, which has already been examined in previous research. A full understanding of the function and application of SAP nanoparticles can provide a simple and practical strategy for the development of anti-tumor drugs and vaccine design, which contributes to the historical transition of peptide nanohydrogels from bench to bedside and brings as much survival benefits as possible to cancer patients.

Engineering Self-Assembling Peptide Hydrogel to Enhance the Capacity of Dendritic Cells to Activate In Vivo T-Cell Immunity

“…Due to their adhesion, 37 biocompatibility, 38 and biodegradation, 39,40 peptides have been widely used in cell culture, 41 tissue engineering, 42,43 and local delivery of various drugs/genes. 44,45 Our experiments showed that RLDI and RQDT can continuously and stably release antigens, which provides a reliable basis for continuous and stable T-cell stimulation to produce specific immune responses when DC vaccines are injected into mice. Several problems with DC vaccines have been optimized and explored here.…”

Recent Advances in DNA Vaccines against Lung Cancer: A Mini Review

“…Self-assembling peptides (SAPs) are small biomedical materials that can also function as an effective drug delivery system to deliver antigens to cancer cells [ 80 , 81 ]. SAPs can be manufactured to form various constructions such as nanomicelles, nanotubes, nanovesicles, nanotapes, and hydrogels [ 80 ].…”

“…This innovative delivery system has several advantages compared to liposomes or nanoparticles, such as high drug-loading efficiency, low drug leakage, easier uptake, and highly biodegradable properties [ 63 ]. Additionally, it can induce long-time immune response in an adjuvant independent manner [ 81 ]. Recently, an interesting study showed that a new delivery platform based on SAPs, called the Glycosaminoglycan (GAG)-binding enhanced transduction (GET), was able to promote delivery of nucleic acids for gene therapy in lung organs [ 82 ].…”

Peptide-based supramolecular assembly drugs toward cancer theranostics

“…Peptides display many different biological functions [74]. Assemblies formed from immune active peptides possess immunoregulatory features, immune checkpoint blocking (ICB) effect, antigen function, or self-adjuvanticity.…”