Potential therapeutic applications of biosurfactants

Abstract

Biosurfactants have recently emerged as promising molecules for their structural novelty, versatility, and diverse properties that are potentially useful for many therapeutic applications. Mainly due to their surface activity, these molecules interact with cell membranes of several organisms and/or with the surrounding environments, and thus can be viewed as potential cancer therapeutics or as constituents of drug delivery systems. Some types of microbial surfactants, such as lipopeptides and glycolipids, have been shown to selectively inhibit the proliferation of cancer cells and to disrupt cell membranes causing their lysis through apoptosis pathways. Moreover, biosurfactants as drug delivery vehicles offer commercially attractive and scientifically novel applications. This review covers the current state-of-the-art in biosurfactant research for therapeutic purposes, providing new directions towards the discovery and development of molecules with novel structures and diverse functions for advanced applications.

Screening concepts, characterization and structural analysis of microbial-derived bioactive lipopeptides: a review

“…Potential applications of LP/BS has been the subject of a number of thorough reviews and research publications. [2,3,[8][9][10][11][12] The broad spectrum of properties attributed to LP can be credited to their modularity, which results in a variety of possible structures. A change in a single amino acid within the molecule can cause an activity modification.…”

Isolation and characterization of glycolipid biosurfactant produced by a Pseudomonas otitidis strain isolated from Chirimiri coal mines, India

“…On the basis of chemical structures, microbial derived BSs can be classified as glycolipids, polypeptides, lipoproteins, phospholipids, fatty acids, neutral lipids, particulate and polymeric surfactants (Geys et al 2014;Gudiña et al 2013;Healy et al 1996). Among these groups, the most common BSs that have been studied till date, are the glycolipids and the lipopeptides produced by Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Bacillus subtilis strains, respectively (Gudiña et al 2015).…”

“…Furthermore, BSs are usually effective at extreme pH, temperatures and salt concentrations and have less impact on the environment than chemical surfactants (Gudiña et al 2013). Due to these unique properties, BSs can be used in several industries including food, beverages, cosmetics, agrochemicals, petrochemicals, petroleum, metallurgy, mining and many more.…”

Activating Intrinsic Carbohydrate-Active Enzymes of the Smut Fungus Ustilago maydis for the Degradation of Plant Cell Wall Components

“…Remarkably, itaconic acid synthesis in U. maydis wild-type isolates already yields about twice as much as A. terreus strains did in early development, underpinning the potential of this organism and the resulting need for further research into this direction (24). Further interesting secondary metabolites found in U. maydis are the glycolipid biosurfactants mannosylerythritol and cellobiose lipids, which could be applied, e.g., in the food industry, medicine, and pharmacology, or even in agriculture and remediation (32)(33)(34)(35)(36)(37).…”