Cell Membrane as A Promising Therapeutic Target: From Materials Design to Biomedical Applications

• Published in: Angewandte Chemie International Edition Vol. 63; no. 18; pp. e202400249 - n/a
• Main Authors: Wu, Xiaofeng, Hu, Jing‐Jing, Yoon, Juyoung
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Germany Wiley Subscription Services, Inc 24.04.2024
• Edition: International ed. in English
• Subjects: Biodegradation; Biomedical materials; Biosynthesis; cell membrane; Cell Membrane - chemistry; Cell membranes; Chimeras; Degradation; Design; Functional materials; Humans; membrane protein degradation; Membrane proteins; Membrane Proteins - metabolism; Membranes; Neoplasms - metabolism; Pharmacology; Photodynamic therapy; Phototherapy; Proteins; Self-assembly; Signal transduction; Therapeutic targets; self-assembly; phototherapy; membrane protein degradation; biosynthesis; cell membrane
• ISSN: 1433-7851; 1521-3773; 1521-3773
• DOI: 10.1002/anie.202400249

The cell membrane is a crucial component of cells, protecting their integrity and stability while facilitating signal transduction and information exchange. Therefore, disrupting its structure or impairing its functions can potentially cause irreversible cell damage. Presently, the tumor cell membrane is recognized as a promising therapeutic target for various treatment methods. Given the extensive research focused on cell membranes, it is both necessary and timely to discuss these developments, from materials design to specific biomedical applications. This review covers treatments based on functional materials targeting the cell membrane, ranging from well‐known membrane‐anchoring photodynamic therapy to recent lysosome‐targeting chimaeras for protein degradation. The diverse therapeutic mechanisms are introduced in the following sections: membrane‐anchoring phototherapy, self‐assembly on the membrane, in situ biosynthesis on the membrane, and degradation of cell membrane proteins by chimeras. In each section, we outline the conceptual design or general structure derived from numerous studies, emphasizing representative examples to understand advancements and draw inspiration. Finally, we discuss some challenges and future directions in membrane‐targeted therapy from our perspective. This review aims to engage multidisciplinary readers and encourage researchers in related fields to advance the fundamental theories and practical applications of membrane‐targeting therapeutic agents. Currently, tumor cell membrane possessing the unique structure and diverse functions has been recognized as a promising therapeutic target. In this review, diverse treatments aiming at cell membrane based on functional materials are summarized and discussed, ranging from well‐known photodynamic therapy/photothermal therapy (PDT/PTT), in situ self‐assembly/biosynthesis to newly emerged lysosome‐targeting chimaeras for protein degradation.