Bacteriocins, Antimicrobial Peptides from Bacterial Origin: Overview of Their Biology and Their Impact against Multidrug-Resistant Bacteria

Abstract

Currently, the emergence and ongoing dissemination of antimicrobial resistance among bacteria are critical health and economic issue, leading to increased rates of morbidity and mortality related to bacterial infections. Research and development for new antimicrobial agents is currently needed to overcome this problem. Among the different approaches studied, bacteriocins seem to be a promising possibility. These molecules are peptides naturally synthesized by ribosomes, produced by both Gram-positive bacteria (GPB) and Gram-negative bacteria (GNB), which will allow these bacteriocin producers to survive in highly competitive polymicrobial environment. Bacteriocins exhibit antimicrobial activity with variable spectrum depending on the peptide, which may target several bacteria. Already used in some areas such as agro-food, bacteriocins may be considered as interesting candidates for further development as antimicrobial agents used in health contexts, particularly considering the issue of antimicrobial resistance. The aim of this review is to present an updated global report on the biology of bacteriocins produced by GPB and GNB, as well as their antibacterial activity against relevant bacterial pathogens, and especially against multidrug-resistant bacteria.

Antibacterial Activity of Bacteriocinogenic Commensal Escherichia coli against Zoonotic Strains Resistant and Sensitive to Antibiotics

“…Studies on the activity of bacteriocins, as an alternative to adjunctive therapy with antibiotics, and trials focused on probiotic bacteria are intensively conducted [31][32][33][34]. They concern mostly the bacteriocins of Gram-positive bacteria [35][36][37][38][39], but colicins and microcins are also tested as proteins with activity against pathogenic Gram-negative bacteria [40][41][42][43][44][45][46][47][48][49][50], including a few studies related to antibiotic-resistant strains [51,52]. However, nonclinical strains of animal origin, derived from farm animals that are particularly resistant to antibiotics, may reveal a distinct profile of sensitivity to bacteriocins.…”

From cheese whey permeate to Sakacin-A/bacterial cellulose nanocrystal conjugates for antimicrobial food packaging applications: a circular economy case study

“…Despite nisin remains the only bacteriocin approved as such for use as a preservative in food, LAB have attained a "Generally Regarded as Safe" (GRAS) status and bacteriocins in general have been shown to be safe for consumption because of their safe origin 23 . Bacteriocins are completely digested in the gastrointestinal tract, are resistant to the common thermal treatments for pasteurization or in some cases even sterilization, and are 10 3 -10 6 times stronger than several known antimicrobials (ampicillin, penicillin, chloramphenicol…) against pathogenic microorganisms, such as Listeria monocytogenes [24][25][26] . The use of bacteriocins in food preservation may also offer the benefit of meeting the consumers request for minimally processed food containing natural additives 27 .…”

Microbiota of Wild Fruits from the Amazon Region of Ecuador: Linking Diversity and Functional Potential of Lactic Acid Bacteria with Their Origin

“…It is known that some LAB strains produce a wide variety of anti-pathogenic compounds, like bacteriocins, ethanol, organic acids, diacetyl, acetaldehydes, hydrogen peroxide (H 2 O 2 ), and peptides [42,43]. When we analyzed the antimicrobial spectrum against ten Gram-negative and Gram-positive bacteria, including closely related species and pathogens such as Salmonella enterica, Shigella sonnei, Escherichia coli, Enterobacter, Staphylococcus aureus, we observed that the isolates showed high inhibitory potential, as none had values below six and were defined as broad-spectrum (Figures 3 and 4).…”