The expanding scope of antimicrobial peptide structures and their modes of action

• Published in: Trends in biotechnology (Regular ed.) Vol. 29; no. 9; pp. 464 - 472
• Main Authors: Nguyen, Leonard T, Haney, Evan F, Vogel, Hans J
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Cambridge, MA Elsevier Ltd 01.09.2011; Cell Press; Elsevier Limited
• Subjects: amino acid composition; Amino acids; Anti-Infective Agents - chemistry; Anti-Infective Agents - pharmacology; anti-infective properties; antibiotic resistance; Antibiotics; Antimicrobial agents; Antimicrobial Cationic Peptides - chemistry; Antimicrobial Cationic Peptides - pharmacology; antimicrobial peptides; Aqueous solutions; Bacteria; Biological and medical sciences; Biotechnology; Cationic; Cytotoxicity; Deoxyribonucleic acid; Design engineering; DNA; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Humans; Hydrophobic surfaces; Immune system; Immune systems; innate immunity; Internal Medicine; Lipids; mechanism of action; Medical research; Membranes; Peptides; Proteins; Structure-Activity Relationship; structure-activity relationships; Studies; Wound healing; Review; Peptides; Structure activity relation; Mechanism of action; Antimicrobial agent
• ISSN: 0167-7799; 1879-3096
• DOI: 10.1016/j.tibtech.2011.05.001

Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) are an integral part of the innate immune system that protect a host from invading pathogenic bacteria. To help overcome the problem of antimicrobial resistance, cationic AMPs are currently being considered as potential alternatives for antibiotics. Although extremely variable in length, amino acid composition and secondary structure, all peptides can adopt a distinct membrane-bound amphipathic conformation. Recent studies demonstrate that they achieve their antimicrobial activity by disrupting various key cellular processes. Some peptides can even use multiple mechanisms. Moreover, several intact proteins or protein fragments are now being shown to have inherent antimicrobial activity. A better understanding of the structure–activity relationships of AMPs is required to facilitate the rational design of novel antimicrobial agents.