Peptide-based supramolecular photodynamic therapy systems: From rational molecular design to effective cancer treatment

Peptide-based supramolecular photodynamic therapy (PDT) is an emerging modality for cancer treatments. This strategy exploits the biological activities and self-assembling potential of peptides to enhance the delivery selectivity of photosensitizers to the lesion site, ultimately achieving the improved treatment efficacy upon the light irradiation. In this review, we survey the recent advancements in the rational design and preparation of peptide-based PDT systems for targeted delivery and anti-tumor treatments. We carefully analyze the different synthetic approaches for the preparation of PDT systems in terms of the associative interactions between peptides and photosensitizers, i.e., non-covalent interactions and covalent ones. Both mono-therapeutic approaches and PDT-based combination therapies are examined in this review. Future outlooks and upcoming challenges in peptide-based PDT systems with an eye toward translational medicine are also discussed at the end.