Photo-pharmacology: Light-Activated Drugs for Precision Therapy – Current Advances and Future Prospects

ABSTRACT Photo-pharmacology means use of light to precisely drug deliver at target site. Such a novel methods ability to improve drug specificity by reducing off-target effects. The energy of light is used to change for shape and chemical properties of the drug, resulting in different mechanism of action of drug. This is done to eventually to get control when and where drugs are active in a reversible manner, to prevent side effects, adverse effects, and toxicity. It aims to reduce systemic toxicity of drug and the emergence of resistance, while attaining unprecedented correctness in treatment. Light serves as an excellent external stimulus due to its high spatial and temporal resolution. The use of light to regulate biological processes has evolved into a vibrant field over the past decade. Employing light on chemical substances such as bioactive molecules and drug delivery systems offers a promising therapeutic approach to achieve precise control over biological processes. In this review, we provide an overview of the advancements in opt-chemical technologies for controlling bioactive molecules (photo-pharmacology) and drug delivery systems (photo-responsive drug delivery), with an emphasis on their relationship and biomedical applications. Keywords: - Photo-pharmacology, photo-responsive, therapeutic.