Antimicrobial peptide elicitors: New hope for the post-antibiotic era

• Published in: Innate immunity (London, England) Vol. 19; no. 3; pp. 227 - 241
• Main Author: de Oca, Ernesto Prado Montes
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: London, England SAGE Publications 01.06.2013
• Subjects: Acquired immune deficiency syndrome; Animals; Anti-Bacterial Agents - adverse effects; Anti-Bacterial Agents - therapeutic use; Antimicrobial Cationic Peptides - classification; Antimicrobial Cationic Peptides - immunology; Antimicrobial Cationic Peptides - therapeutic use; Bacterial Infections - drug therapy; Bacterial Infections - immunology; Clinical Trials as Topic; Human immunodeficiency virus; Humans; Immunity, Innate; Peptide Fragments - classification; Peptide Fragments - immunology; Peptide Fragments - therapeutic use; defensins; LL-37; Antibiotics; innate immunity; cathelicidins; keratinocyte; elicitor; DEFB1; TLR; antimicrobial peptides
• ISSN: 1753-4259; 1753-4267
• DOI: 10.1177/1753425912460708

Antimicrobial peptides or host defense peptides are fundamental components of human innate immunity. Recent and growing evidence suggests they have a role in a broad range of diseases, including cancer, allergies and susceptibility to infection, including HIV/AIDS. Antimicrobial peptide elicitors (APEs) are physical, biological or chemical agents that boost human antimicrobial peptide expression. The current knowledge of APEs and their potential use in the treatment of human infectious diseases are reviewed, and a classification system for APEs is proposed. The efficient use of APEs in clinical practice could mark the beginning of the urgently needed post-antibiotic era, but further trials assessing their efficacy and safety are required.