Frontiers in G‐Quadruplex therapeutics in cancer: Selection of small molecules, peptides and aptamers

Abstract G‐Quadruplex, a unique secondary structure in nucleic acids found throughout human genome, elicited widespread interest in the field of therapeutic research. Being present in key regulatory regions of oncogenes, RNAs and telomere, G‐Quadruplex structure regulates transcription, translation, splicing, etc. Changes in its structure and stability leads to differential expression of oncogenes causing cancer. Thus, targeting G‐Quadruplex structures with small molecules/other biologics has shown elevated research interest. Covering previous reports, in this review, we try to enlighten the facts on the structural diversity in G‐Quadruplex ligands aiming to provide newer insights to design first‐in‐class drugs for the next‐generation cancer treatment.