Self-assembling Bioactive Peptides for Supramolecular Cancer Immunotherapy

Tumor immunotherapy, which aims at activating the host immune system to resist or eliminate cancer cells, has radically transformed clinical treatment. A highly interesting development in this field is the use of supramolecular nanodrugs based on bioactive peptides, because of not only their precise structure, excellent biocompatibility, and ease of chemical modification but also their inherent and multiple immune functions. Significantly, supramolecular nanostructures endow bioactive peptides with optimized efficacy and safety by increasing stability, optimizing drug pharmacokinetics, and enhancing tumoral selectivity and targetability. In this chapter, we focus on the design and modification of bioactive peptide building blocks, then introduce their self-assembly kinetics or dynamics, and finally illustrate how the obtained nanodrugs interact with the immune system. To provide a deeper understanding, a series of representative examples will be elaborated. Challenges and perspectives regarding bioactive peptide-based nanodrugs toward clinical translation will be highlighted as well. Collectively, this chapter provides a reliable reference to self-assembled bioactive peptide-based nanodrugs for supramolecular cancer immunotherapy.