New Method Finds Peptides That Can Both Target and Penetrate Specific Tissues | Research

The takeaway

Combining phage display with microdialysis selects for peptides that not only home to specific organs but also penetrate tissue to reach target cells.

Dual selection capability
The combined method selects for peptides with both organ-homing and tissue-penetrating properties — a key advance over standard phage display

What the researchers found

Combining in vivo phage display with microdialysis-based parenchymal recovery enables selection of peptides capable of both vascular homing and tissue penetration.

Why it matters

Many drug delivery peptides can find the right organ but cannot get drugs deep enough into tissue. This method solves that problem by selecting for both properties simultaneously.

The numbers in context

Demonstrated in skin wounds (vascularized and diabetic) and retinopathy models. Combined phage display with microdialysis-based parenchymal recovery and high-throughput sequencing.

How the study worked

Novel screening approach combining in vivo phage display with microdialysis and high-throughput sequencing to identify peptides with dual homing and tissue-penetrating capabilities.

Who was studied

Wound and retinopathy animal models

What this study cannot tell us

Proof-of-concept methodology. The selected peptides need to be validated individually for therapeutic applications. Microdialysis recovery rates may introduce selection bias.

How to read the evidence

Methodological advance with proof-of-concept demonstration. The approach is novel and promising but requires extensive validation for therapeutic applications.

When this study was published

Published in 2025, introducing a new screening methodology for targeted drug delivery peptides.

The bigger picture

This methodology could accelerate the development of truly targeted drug delivery systems that reach disease-relevant cells, not just the right organ's blood vessels.

Questions still open

Which specific tissue-penetrating peptides were identified using this combined approach?
Can this method be applied to identify tumor-penetrating peptides for cancer drug delivery?

Common questions

What is phage display?

Phage display is a technique where billions of different peptides are displayed on the surface of viruses (phages). When injected into an animal, phages carrying peptides that bind to a specific organ accumulate there, allowing researchers to identify organ-targeting peptides.

Why is tissue penetration important for drug delivery?

Many diseases (especially cancer) require drugs to reach cells deep within tissue, not just the blood vessels. A peptide that homes to an organ but stays in the blood vessels cannot deliver drugs to where they are most needed.

Read the original research

Screening of homing and tissue-penetrating peptides by microdialysis and in vivo phage display.

Life science alliance, 8(5)

View on PubMed ↗Publisher’s paper ↗

Citation

Pemmari, Toini; Prince, Stuart; Wiss, Niklas; Kõiv, Kuldar; May, Ulrike; Mölder, Tarmo; Sudakov, Aleksander; Munoz Caro, Fernanda; Lehtonen, Soili; Uusitalo-Järvinen, Hannele; Teesalu, Tambet; Järvinen, Tero Ah. (2025). Screening of homing and tissue-penetrating peptides by microdialysis and in vivo phage display.. Life science alliance, 8(5). https://doi.org/10.26508/lsa.202201490