Para-sulfonatocalix[n]arene-based biomaterials: Recent progress in pharmaceutical and biological applications

The history, properties, and characteristics of para-sulfonato-calixarenes are described. On the one hand,
the inherent antibacterial and antifungal properties against microorganisms, and on the other hand non-
toxicity of these supramolecules toward human organs are analyzed. The resulting biocompatibility of
para-sulfonato-calixarenes makes them potential candidates for diverse life sciences and pharmaceutical
applications without significant side effects. The interactions with different drugs, the capability of drug
encapsulation, delivery, and release, the formation of host-quest assemblies and inclusion complexation
between para-sulfonato-calixarenes and drugs were also investigated in detail. Besides, their function in
cancer treatment and their toxicity against different cancer cell lines were fully reviewed and summa-
rized. Afterward, the capability of these macrocyclic compounds for biosensing of organic compounds,
peptides and enzymes activity was highlighted. In this review, we also take a brief look at recent reports
on the applications of para-sulfonato-calixarenes in fluorescence imaging and their usage as highly stable
and bright probes for in vivo and in vitro imaging and sensing