Investigation of antimicrobial PEG-poly(amino acid)s

Abstract

There has been significant interest in the development of antimicrobial cationic polymers due to their low manufacture cost and ease of synthesis compared to small antimicrobial peptides (AMPs). These polymers are designed to mimic amphiphilic structures of AMPs which can disrupt negatively charged bacterial membranes, and can therefore lead to potential antibiotic agents to fight emerging drug resistance. However, the reports of biodegradable antimicrobial polymer nanoparticles are rare. Herein we report the development of antimicrobial PEG-poly(amino acid)s. Some of these multi-block PEG-poly(amino acid)s form defined nanoparticles in solution, and display potent and broad-spectrum antimicrobial activity. Fluorescence and SEM studies show that these polymers are likely to kill bacteria by disrupting bacterial membranes. As these polymers are biodegradable and easy to scale up, they may provide an attractive approach for the development of antibiotic agents.

Controlling macromolecular structures towards effective antimicrobial polymers

“…Reprinted with permission from Ref. [177]. antimicrobial and biocompatible properties in different polymeric systems.…”

“…Cai and co-workers developed biodegradable nanoparticles from PEG-poly(amino acid)s [177]. They synthesized a series of PEGylated poly(amino acid)s via ring-opening polymerization of Ncarboxyanhydrides with cationic and hydrophobic properties.…”

Not Just for Tumor Targeting: Unmet Medical Needs and Opportunities for Nanomedicine

“…It is even now understood that their microbicide activities often extend to acting as metabolic inhibitors by binding to intracellular targets. In a recent study [94], the authors designed amphiphilic PEGylated poly(amino acids) to build a series of small peptides in order to mimic the function and mechanism of AMPs. They obtained core-shell nanoparticles (hydrophobic core and a cationic shell including a PEG corona) in water with sizes ranging from 50 to 200 nm.…”

Polycarbonates with Potent and Selective Antimicrobial Activity toward Gram-Positive Bacteria

“…13 After dialysis, the solvent was evaporated to yield the products as colorless sticky oils, which were characterized by 1 H NMR (supporting information). …”