Advances in the Design of Novel Photoresponsive Drugs and Their Applications in Photopharmacology
DAI Jinghong, ZHANG Zhiwei, ZHANG Junji, ZHU Weihong
Center of Photosensitive Chemicals Engineering, Institute of Chemicals, School of Chemistry and Molecular Engineering, East China University of Science and Technology, Shanghai 200237, China
Abstract：Photoresponsive drugs can regulate drug activity with high spatial and temporal resolution for enhanced drug selectivity, holding great promise in precision disease treatment. However, due to some limitations, such as difficulty in synergizing photoswitching with drug activity and high toxicity/poor stability in physiological conditions, the photoresponsive drug based on traditional photoswitches can not be demonstrated in living animals at the current stage. Bioactive photochromic dyes, which integrate drug activity and photochromic properties, allow the construction of novel photoresponsive drugs with an “all-in-one” design where the light-responsive unit and drug activity are integrated. This approach improves the efficiency of photoresponsive drug design and biocompatibility by synergizing photoreactivity and drug activity. This paper summarized recent advancements in this kind of novel photoresponsive drugs based on bioactive photochromic dyes, with a focus on two critical properties: light regulation efficiency and biocompatibility. Additionally, it provided an overview and evaluation of the various types of photochromic dyes involved and concluded with a perspective on the future directions of photoresponsive drug design and its applications in photopharmacology.
DAI Jinghong,ZHANG Zhiwei,ZHANG Junji et al. Advances in the Design of Novel Photoresponsive Drugs and Their Applications in Photopharmacology[J]. Chemical Reaction Engineering and Technology, 2025, 41(1): 108-118.
