Xinxin Li, PhD | Beijing University of Chinese Medicine
Competition Sponsor: Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences
Awardee Year: 2024
Glioma is the most common intracranial malignant tumor, with incidence increasing with age. The global aging population has driven a sharp rise in glioma cases, posing a significant threat to human health and longevity. Current therapies, such as surgery and radiotherapy, are often unsuitable for elderly patients due to their invasive nature and severe side effects, highlighting the urgent need for novel therapeutic strategies. This study identifies, for the first time, the δ-opioid receptor (DOR) as being overexpressed in tumor sites of both clinical glioma patients and glioma-in-situ mouse models, establishing DOR as a promising drug delivery target. On the one hand, this project aims to develop anti-glioma drugs derived from natural products targeting the DOR. On the other hand, building on our previous discovery of a self-assembling tetrapeptide capable of crossing the blood-brain barrier (BBB), we propose integrating this peptide into a novel dual-targeting drug delivery system. This delivery system could traverse the BBB in a transcytosis pathway mediated by insulin receptor (IR), and then accurately recognize glioma cells by targeting IR and DOR to achieve efficient and precise drug delivery. This project is intended to overcome the lack of effective clinical drug therapies for glioma. This project expects to offer new therapeutic candidates for glioma, particularly in elderly patients, advancing global efforts to improve health and extend longevity.