Article
Plant Sciences
Valentina Librizzi, Antonino Malacrino, Maria Giulia Li Destri Nicosia, Nataly Barger, Tal Luzzatto-Knaan, Sonia Pangallo, Giovanni E. Agosteo, Leonardo Schena
Summary: The use of synthetic chemicals in agriculture has caused severe damage to the environment and human health. This study explores the potential of microorganisms and their metabolites as an alternative strategy for environmentally friendly plant disease control. By screening soil microbial diversity, 22 bacterial strains were isolated and their ability to counteract plant pathogens was tested. The extracts from the three most effective bacterial strains exhibited exceptional biocontrol activity in simulated real-world applications.
Review
Chemistry, Medicinal
Ricardo Ribeiro, Eugenia Pinto, Carla Fernandes, Emilia Sousa
Summary: Marine cyclic peptides are a diverse group of compounds with broad antimicrobial activities, showing promising potential as novel therapeutic agents. These compounds have unique structural characteristics and have demonstrated interesting antimicrobial activities against drug-resistant microorganisms. Marine cyclic peptides are not only potent in vitro, but also show promising results in vivo, making them an important resource for the development of new antimicrobial agents.
Article
Plant Sciences
Eric H-L Chen, Cheng-Wei Weng, Yi-Min Li, Ming-Chin Wu, Chien-Chih Yang, Kung-Ta Lee, Rita P-Y Chen, Chiu-Ping Cheng
Summary: This study designed a series of amphipathic helical peptides, finding that peptides with the special sequence pattern BBHBBHHBBH displayed excellent bactericidal and fungicidal activities in a wide range of economically important plant pathogens. Peptides with higher helical propensity had lower antimicrobial activity. Modifying the peptides with a long acyl chain at their N-terminus improved their plant protection effect.
FRONTIERS IN PLANT SCIENCE
(2021)
Review
Infectious Diseases
Shian Lai, Quan Zhang, Lin Jin
Summary: Due to the abuse of antibiotics, an increasing number of drug-resistant bacterial strains have emerged, posing a serious threat to human and animal health. Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) have proven to be one of the most effective solutions, as they exhibit low propensity for drug resistance and possess remarkable antimicrobial effects. Among them, cyclic AMPs, especially macrocyclic ones, have garnered extensive attention.
Review
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Adrianne M. Lima, Mayara I. G. Azevedo, Lyndefania M. Sousa, Nayara S. Oliveira, Claudia R. Andrade, Cleverson D. T. Freitas, Pedro F. N. Souza
Summary: This review focuses on plant-derived antimicrobial peptides (AMPs), providing information on their classification, characteristics, mechanisms of action, and potential medical applications. Despite concerns about toxicity and limitations in administration, synthetic AMPs with improved features can be designed using bioinformatics tools.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF BIOLOGICAL MACROMOLECULES
(2022)
Article
Chemistry, Applied
Deborah C. Freitas, Rafael A. Zambelli, Marcio Ramos, Joao P. B. Oliveira, Pedro F. N. Souza, Glauber B. M. Santos, Celso S. Nagano, Leandro P. Bezerra, Ayrles F. B. Silva, Jefferson S. Oliveira, Cleverson D. T. Freitas
Summary: The study demonstrated that antimicrobial peptides generated from the hydrolysis of wheat gluten proteins using latex peptidases showed inhibitory effects on various fungi and delayed fungal growth on bread. Synthesized peptides exhibited activity against Penicillium sp., damaging the fungal plasma membrane without toxicity.
Review
Microbiology
Xin Yao, Hailin Guo, Kaixuan Zhang, Mengyu Zhao, Jingjun Ruan, Jie Chen
Summary: Trichoderma is mainly used to control soil-borne diseases as well as some leaf and panicle diseases of various plants. It not only prevents diseases, but also promotes growth, improves nutrient utilization, enhances resistance, and reduces agrochemical pollution. Therefore, as a safe, low-cost, effective, and eco-friendly biocontrol agent, Trichoderma is widely utilized for different crop species.
FRONTIERS IN MICROBIOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Plant Sciences
Ya-Jing Wang, Chun-Yue Liu, Yan-Lei Wang, Feng-Xiang Zhang, Yong-Fu Lu, Si-Yang Dai, Chang Li, Yi Sun, Yue-Hu Pei
Summary: In this study, sixteen compounds were isolated from cultures of the endophytic fungus Fusarium sp., including four new cyclodepsipeptides and four new cyclopentane derivatives. These compounds exhibited antitumor activities against liver cancer cell lines, with compounds 4, 9, 10, and 12 showing the most potent cytotoxicities.
JOURNAL OF NATURAL PRODUCTS
(2022)
Article
Plant Sciences
Laura Montesinos, Beatriz Gascon, Lidia Ruz, Esther Badosa, Marta Planas, Lidia Feliu, Emilio Montesinos
Summary: The hybrid peptide BP178, engineered for plant expression, exhibits strong bactericidal activity and induces plant defense responses in tomato plants, enhancing their resistance against pathogenic bacteria. The upregulated genes include pathogenesis-related proteins and transcription factors involved in signaling pathways, suggesting that BP178 acts through a dual mechanism of antimicrobial activity and plant defense elicitation.
FRONTIERS IN PLANT SCIENCE
(2021)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Bingjie Wang, Wenshang Zhang, Qi Pan, Jiaojiao Tao, Shuang Li, Tianze Jiang, Xia Zhao
Summary: A novel biodegradable microneedle patch (CuS/PAF-26 MN) was developed for treating deep cutaneous fungal infection (DCFI). CuS/PAF-26 MN consists of hyaluronic acid (HA) and copper sulfide nano-enzyme (CuS NE) and antimicrobial peptide (PAF-26), which can deliver CuS NE and PAF-26 simultaneously. CuS NE catalyzes hydrogen peroxide to generate reactive oxygen species (ROS), and PAF-26 disrupts the fungal cell membrane directly, resulting in strong antifungal activities without drug resistance. In a DCFI mouse model, CuS/PAF-26 MN exhibited significantly superior antifungal effect compared to traditional ointment, CuS MN, or PAF-26 MN. Therefore, CuS/PAF-26 MN shows promising application prospects for DCFI treatment.
Article
Infectious Diseases
Atul Tyagi, Sudeep Roy, Sanjay Singh, Manoj Semwal, Ajit K. Shasany, Ashok Sharma, Ivo Provaznik
Summary: The study team developed an SVM-based model for designing and predicting plant-derived antifungal peptides. The analysis showed preferences for C, G, K, R, S in amino acid sequences, with G, K, R, A dominating the N-terminal and N, S, C, G preferring the C-terminal. Motif analysis revealed the presence of motifs like NYVF, NYVFP, YVFP, NYVFPA, VFPA.
Review
Environmental Sciences
Yueyue Tang, Guandi He, Yeqing He, Tengbing He
Summary: This study analyzed international research on plant resistance to fungal pathogens between 2008 and 2021. The results showed that research in this field is booming, with the United States and China being the core countries. The study also identified five possible research ideas to guide further studies in this area.
Article
Infectious Diseases
Ida Kristine Lysgaard Andersen, Thomas T. Thomsen, Jasmina Rashid, Thomas Ronnemoes Bobak, Alberto Oddo, Henrik Franzyk, Anders Lobner-Olesen, Paul R. Hansen
Summary: The present study investigated the effect of C-terminus-to-side chain macrocyclization and fatty acid modification on the antimicrobial and hemolytic activity of BP214, an all-D antimicrobial peptide amide. The results showed that analog 13 exhibited the most promising antimicrobial activity against E. coli and low hemolytic activity.
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Antonio Maldonado-Barragan, Estibaliz Alegria-Carrasco, Maria del Mar Blanco, Ana Isabel Vela, Jose Francisco Fernandez-Garayzabal, Juan Miguel Rodriguez, Alicia Gibello
Summary: Lactococcus garvieae is an emerging pathogen that causes infectious diseases in animals and potentially in humans. In this study, two gene clusters encoding novel bacteriocins were identified in a plasmid of a clinical isolate. These bacteriocins exhibited inhibitory activity against L. garvieae strains and other bacteria, and they may use a mannose uptake system as a receptor. Interestingly, they were highly active against their own host.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF MOLECULAR SCIENCES
(2022)
Review
Food Science & Technology
Laila N. Shwaiki, Elke K. Arendt, Kieran M. Lynch
Summary: The modern approach to food preservation involves various hurdles for microbial pathogens to overcome, including thermal processes, chemical additives, irradiation, and modified atmosphere packaging. Plant compounds and peptides, particularly antimicrobial peptides, show promise as novel natural food preservatives. Further studies are needed to fully explore their potential in reducing food losses and waste.
CRITICAL REVIEWS IN FOOD SCIENCE AND NUTRITION
(2022)