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A Head-to-Head Comparison of the Antimicrobial Activities of 30 Ultra-Short Antimicrobial Peptides Against Staphylococcus aureus, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Candida albicans

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Abstract

The rapid emergence of drug-resistant bacteria and the lack of new antibiotics entering the market is a major worldwide concern. Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) are deemed plausible drug candidates as they specifically target and disrupt microbial cell membranes, causing death by cell lysis. However, their instability towards plasma proteases and perceived high manufacturing cost limit their potential for further drug development. A plausible solution is to identify and develop very short linear peptides as topical agents for treating skin and soft tissue infections. A literature survey yielded 30 ultra-short AMPs up to 9 residues in length with antimicrobial activities. They were commercially synthesized and a head-to-head antimicrobial activity comparison was conducted on common skin pathogens including meticillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Candida albicans. The topical broad-spectrum antibiotic Gentamicin and antifungal Nystatin were included as controls. Experimental results revealed only 2 peptides with potent broad-spectrum activities; octapeptide IRIRIRIR-NH2 and nonapeptide Ac-KWRRWVRWI-NH2 exhibited MICs of 6.25 μM against all test microbes. Both peptides have been reported to be non-cytotoxic to human cells, suggesting that they could potentially be further developed as topical antimicrobial agents.

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Acknowledgments

We thank A*STAR Biomedical Research Council for financial support.

Conflict of Interest

Qiu Ying Lau, Xing Yao Choo, Zhi Xue Lim, Xin Ni Kong, Fui Mee Ng, Melgious J. Y. Ang, Jeffrey Hill and C. S. Brian Chia declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Human and Animal Rights and Informed Consent

This article does not contain any studies involving human or animal subjects performed by any of the authors.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Experimental Therapeutics Centre, Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), 31 Biopolis Way, Nanos #03-01, Singapore, 138669, Singapore

    Qiu Ying Lau, Xing Yao Choo, Zhi Xue Lim, Xin Ni Kong, Fui Mee Ng, Melgious J. Y. Ang, Jeffrey Hill & C. S. Brian Chia

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  1. Qiu Ying Lau
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  2. Xing Yao Choo
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  4. Xin Ni Kong
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  7. Jeffrey Hill
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Correspondence to C. S. Brian Chia.

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Xing Yao Choo, Zhi Xue Lim, and Xin Ni Kong have contributed equally in this work.

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Lau, Q.Y., Choo, X.Y., Lim, Z.X. et al. A Head-to-Head Comparison of the Antimicrobial Activities of 30 Ultra-Short Antimicrobial Peptides Against Staphylococcus aureus, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Candida albicans . Int J Pept Res Ther 21, 21–28 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10989-014-9440-x

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10989-014-9440-x

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