Issue 21, 2017

Self-assembling prodrugs

Abstract

Covalent modification of therapeutic compounds is a clinically proven strategy to devise prodrugs with enhanced treatment efficacies. This prodrug strategy relies on the modified drugs that possess advantageous pharmacokinetic properties and administration routes over their parent drug. Self-assembling prodrugs represent an emerging class of therapeutic agents capable of spontaneously associating into well-defined supramolecular nanostructures in aqueous solutions. The self-assembly of prodrugs expands the functional space of conventional prodrug design, affording a possible pathway to more effective therapies as the assembled nanostructure possesses distinct physicochemical properties and interaction potentials that can be tailored to specific administration routes and disease treatment. In this review, we will discuss the various types of self-assembling prodrugs in development, providing an overview of the methods used to control their structure and function and, ultimately, our perspective on their current and future potential.

Graphical abstract: Self-assembling prodrugs

Article information

Article type
Review Article
Submitted
17 Qad 2017
First published
11 Dit 2017

Chem. Soc. Rev., 2017,46, 6638-6663

Self-assembling prodrugs

A. G. Cheetham, R. W. Chakroun, W. Ma and H. Cui, Chem. Soc. Rev., 2017, 46, 6638 DOI: 10.1039/C7CS00521K

To request permission to reproduce material from this article, please go to the Copyright Clearance Center request page.

If you are an author contributing to an RSC publication, you do not need to request permission provided correct acknowledgement is given.

If you are the author of this article, you do not need to request permission to reproduce figures and diagrams provided correct acknowledgement is given. If you want to reproduce the whole article in a third-party publication (excluding your thesis/dissertation for which permission is not required) please go to the Copyright Clearance Center request page.

Read more about how to correctly acknowledge RSC content.

Social activity

Spotlight

Advertisements