Characterization of Antimicrobial Peptides toward the Development of Novel Antibiotics
1
Japan Society for Promotion of Science, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto 606-8502, Japan
2
Division of Applied Life Sciences, Graduate School of Agriculture, Kyoto University, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto 606-8502, Japan
3
Department of Applied Physics, Division of Precision Science & Applied Physics, Graduate School of Engineering, Osaka University, Suita, Osaka 565-0871, Japan
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Pharmaceuticals 2013, 6(8), 1055-1081; https://doi.org/10.3390/ph6081055
Received: 16 July 2013
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Revised: 2 August 2013
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Accepted: 16 August 2013
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Published: 21 August 2013
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Antimicrobial Agents)
Antimicrobial agents have eradicated many infectious diseases and significantly improved our living environment. However, abuse of antimicrobial agents has accelerated the emergence of multidrug-resistant microorganisms, and there is an urgent need for novel antibiotics. Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) have attracted attention as a novel class of antimicrobial agents because AMPs efficiently kill a wide range of species, including bacteria, fungi, and viruses, via a novel mechanism of action. In addition, they are effective against pathogens that are resistant to almost all conventional antibiotics. AMPs have promising properties; they directly disrupt the functions of cellular membranes and nucleic acids, and the rate of appearance of AMP-resistant strains is very low. However, as pharmaceuticals, AMPs exhibit unfavorable properties, such as instability, hemolytic activity, high cost of production, salt sensitivity, and a broad spectrum of activity. Therefore, it is vital to improve these properties to develop novel AMP treatments. Here, we have reviewed the basic biochemical properties of AMPs and the recent strategies used to modulate these properties of AMPs to enhance their safety.
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Keywords:
antibiotic; antimicrobial peptide; drug delivery; activity regulation
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MDPI and ACS Style
Aoki, W.; Ueda, M. Characterization of Antimicrobial Peptides toward the Development of Novel Antibiotics. Pharmaceuticals 2013, 6, 1055-1081. https://doi.org/10.3390/ph6081055
AMA Style
Aoki W, Ueda M. Characterization of Antimicrobial Peptides toward the Development of Novel Antibiotics. Pharmaceuticals. 2013; 6(8):1055-1081. https://doi.org/10.3390/ph6081055
Chicago/Turabian StyleAoki, Wataru, and Mitsuyoshi Ueda. 2013. "Characterization of Antimicrobial Peptides toward the Development of Novel Antibiotics" Pharmaceuticals 6, no. 8: 1055-1081. https://doi.org/10.3390/ph6081055
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