Abstract
•Extensive research has been made in the search for an ideal anti-cancer therapy.•Cell penetrating peptides (CPPs) provides an efficient pathway for intra-cellular transportation.•CPPs are now well-recognized as facilitators for intracellular cargo delivery against cancer.•We explained development of new CPPs and their utilization to transport bioactive.
Extensive research efforts have been made and are still ongoing in the search for an ideal anti-cancer therapy. Almost all chemotherapeutics require a carrier or vehicle, a drug delivery system that can transport the drug specifically to the targeted cancer cells, sparing normal cells. Cell-penetrating peptides (CPPs) provide an effective and efficient pathway for the intra-cellular transportation of various bioactive molecules in several biomedical therapies. They are now well-recognized as facilitators of intracellular cargo delivery and have excellent potential for targeted anti-cancer therapy. In this review, we explain CPPs, recent progress in the development of new CPPs, and their utilization to transport cargoes such as imaging agents, chemotherapeutics, and short-interfering RNAs (siRNA) into tumor cells, contributing to the advancement of novel tumor-specific delivery systems.