Progress of proteolysis-targeting chimeras (PROTACs) delivery system in tumor treatment

Abstract

Proteolysis targeting chimeras (PROTACs) can use the intrinsic protein degradation system in cells to degrade pathogenic target proteins, and are currently a revolutionary frontier of development strategy for tumor treatment with small molecules. However, the poor water solubility, low cellular permeability, and off-target side effects of most PROTACs have prevented them from passing the preclinical research stage of drug development. This requires the use of appropriate delivery systems to overcome these challenging hurdles and ensure precise delivery of PROTACs towards the tumor site. Therefore, the combination of PROTACs and multifunctional delivery systems will open up new research directions for targeted degradation of tumor proteins. In this review, we systematically reviewed the design principles and the most recent advances of various PROTACs delivery systems. Moreover, the constructive strategies for developing multifunctional PROTACs delivery systems were proposed comprehensively. This review aims to deepen the understanding of PROTACs drugs and promote the further development of PROTACs delivery system.

Keywords: Cereblon; Delivery systems; E3 ubiquitin ligase; PROTAC; Proteolysis targeting chimeras; Von Hippel-Lindau.