Drug Designing: Open Access
Open Access

Abstract

Photopharmacology in Drug Design: Light-Activated Therapeutics for Precision Medicine

Alejandra Ruiz Morales*

Photopharmacology, an emerging field within medicinal chemistry, leverages the precise control of light to activate or deactivate therapeutic agents in a spatially and temporally defined manner. This innovative approach enables a new era of precision medicine by allowing drugs to be turned "on" or "off" at specific sites in the body, minimizing systemic side effects and improving therapeutic efficacy. Unlike conventional pharmacological agents that act continuously and throughout the body, photopharmacological compounds are designed to respond to specific wavelengths of light, enabling a localized effect that is both reversible and tunable. The design of such agents involves incorporating light-sensitive moieties, such as azobenzenes, diarylethenes, or spiropyrans, into the molecular scaffold of bioactive compounds, allowing conformational or structural changes upon light irradiation.

Published Date: 2025-03-04; Received Date: 2025-02-03