Anticancer Bioactive Peptides from Plants: Sources, Action Mechanisms, and Potential Superiority to Conventional Chemotherapy.

Cancer continues to be a major global health challenge, with existing treatments often causing severe side effects, drug resistance, and high costs. Plant-derived anticancer peptides (PDACPs) have emerged as a promising alternative due to their high specificity, multi-target mechanisms, and safety profile. This review summarizes the sources (e.g., legumes, cereals, and medicinal plants), mechanisms of action, and therapeutic potential of PDACPs, highlighting their role in apoptosis induction, cell cycle arrest, anti-angiogenesis, and metastasis inhibition. Mechanistic investigations reveal that PDACPs exert anticancer effects through multiple pathways, including the induction of apoptosis via mitochondrial membrane disruption and the upregulation of pro-apoptotic factors, the inhibition of cell proliferation by arresting cell-cycle progression, the suppression of angiogenesis through the downregulation of vascular endothelial growth factor signaling, and the disruption of tumor-associated membrane integrity. Preclinical studies suggest that, compared to conventional chemotherapeutics, PDACPs may offer advantages such as enhanced tumor selectivity, reduced off-target toxicity, and diminished likelihood of resistance development. We also discuss current challenges in peptide stability, delivery, and large-scale production, and propose strategies, such as nanoparticle encapsulation, to enhance clinical viability. This comprehensive synthesis underscores the potential of PDACPs as next-generation anticancer therapeutics and paves the way for translational development.