Acridine derivatives have been extensively explored as potential therapeutic agents for the treatment of a number of diseases, such as cancer, Alzheimer's, and bacterial and protozoan infections. Their mode of action is mainly attributed to DNA intercalation and the subsequent effects on the biological processes linked to DNA and its related enzymes. This review covers the relevant efforts in developing acridine derivatives with enhanced therapeutic potency and selectivity and as fluorescent materials, with particular focus on the newly patented acridine derivatives in 2009 - 2013, acridine drugs in clinical trials and preclinical studies, and other new derivatives that emerged in 2009 - 2013. Thousands of acridines with therapeutic and biological activities or with photochemical properties have been developed. In addition, to modify the position and the nature of the substituent on the acridine core, more attention may be paid to the development of azaacridine or other heteroatom-substituted acridine derivatives and their synthesis methods to broaden the application of acridine derivatives. In cancer chemotherapy, the mode of action of acridine derivatives needs to be further studied. Efficient methods for identification and optimization of acridine derivatives to localize at the sites of disease need to be further developed. Moreover, acridine drugs may be combined with such bioactive agents as DNA repair proteins inhibitors to overcome tumor resistance and improve outcomes.

Cancer is one of the leading causes of death in the world, and antineoplastic drug research continues to be a major field in medicine development. The marine milieu has thousands of biological species that are a valuable source of novel functional proteins and peptides, which have been used in the treatment of many diseases, including cancer. In contrast with proteins and polypeptides, small peptides (with a molecular weight of less than 1000 Da) have overwhelming advantages, such as preferential and fast absorption, which can decrease the burden on human gastrointestinal function. Besides, these peptides are only connected by a few peptide bonds, and their small molecular weight makes it easy to modify and synthesize them. Specifically, small peptides can deliver nutrients and drugs to cells and tissues in the body. These characteristics make them stand out in relation to targeted drug therapy. Nowadays, the anticancer mechanisms of the small marine peptides are still largely not well understood; however, several marine peptides have been applied in preclinical treatment. This paper highlights the anticancer linear and cyclic small peptides in marine resources and presents a review of peptides and the derivatives and their mechanisms.

Aging is an irreversible physiological process in the human body, and the aging characteristics of the body that accompany this process also lead to many other chronic diseases, such as neurodegenerative diseases represented by Alzheimer’s disease and Parkinson’s disease, cardiovascular diseases, hypertension, obesity, cancer, and so on. The marine environment is highly biodiverse, the natural active products of these organisms constitute a vast treasure trove of marine drugs or drug candidates that play an essential role in disease prevention and treatment, and the active peptide products among them have received special attention because of their unique chemical properties. Therefore, the development of marine peptide compounds as anti-aging drugs is emerging as an important research area. This review highlights the currently available data on marine bioactive peptides with anti-aging potential from 2000 to 2022 by analyzing the prevalent aging mechanisms, critical aging metabolic pathways and well-established multi-omics aging characteristics, as well as grouping different bioactive and biological species lines of peptides from marine organisms and discussing their research modalities and functional characteristics. Active marine peptides is a promising topic to explore and to develop their potential as anti-aging drugs or drug candidates. We expect this review to be instructive for future marine drug development and to reveal new directions for future biopharmaceuticals.