Natural Product-Based Anticancer Drug Development: From Molecular Mechanisms to Therapeutic Applications
A special issue of Pharmaceutics (ISSN 1999-4923). This special issue belongs to the section "Drug Targeting and Design".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 28 February 2026 | Viewed by 17
Special Issue Editor
Interests: natural products; cancer immunotherapy; molecular biology; drug development; immunomodulation; precision oncology; translational research; bioactive compounds
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
Cancer immunotherapy has revolutionized oncological treatment, yet clinical success remains limited, with response rates plateauing around 20%. This modest efficacy, combined with significant adverse effects and high costs, necessitates innovative approaches to enhance therapeutic outcomes. Natural products, which contribute to over 60% of approved anticancer drugs, represent a promising yet underexplored avenue for immunomodulation through diverse mechanisms including checkpoint modulation, macrophage polarization, and immunogenic cell death induction.
The clinical translation of immunomodulatory natural products faces significant challenges due to inadequate preclinical models and complex pharmacological properties. Traditional approaches often fail to predict human responses, creating critical translational gaps. Recent advances in drug development platforms, including three-dimensional culture systems, organoid technology, patient-derived models, and precision medicine approaches, offer new opportunities to overcome these limitations and accelerate the development of natural product-based cancer therapeutics.
From the elucidation of molecular mechanisms to formulation optimization and clinical application, there is growing interest in leveraging natural compounds to enhance immune responses against cancer. The integration of modern pharmaceutical sciences with the traditional use of natural products can create unprecedented opportunities for developing more effective and personalized cancer immunotherapies.
This Special Issue welcomes contributions exploring the development and application of natural product-based anticancer therapeutics with immunomodulatory properties. We invite research on mechanisms of action, novel delivery systems, advanced preclinical models, combination therapies, biomarker discovery, and clinical translation strategies that advance our understanding and application of natural products in cancer immunotherapy.
We look forward to receiving your contributions.
Prof. Dr. Su-Yun Lyu
Guest Editor
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Keywords
- natural products
- cancer immunotherapy
- immunomodulation
- drug development
- anticancer agents
- precision medicine
- translational research
- bioactive compounds
- organoids
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