title: Effects of acyl versus aminoacyl conjugation on the properties of antimicrobial peptides.
abstract: To investigate the importance of increased hydrophobicity at the amino end of antimicrobial peptides, a dermaseptin derivative was used as a template for a systematic acylation study. Through a gradual increase of the acyl moiety chain length, hydrophobicity was monitored and further modulated by acyl conversion to aminoacyl. The chain lengths of the acyl derivatives correlated with a gradual increase in the peptide's global hydrophobicity and stabilization of its helical structure. The effect on cytolytic properties, however, fluctuated for different cells. Whereas acylation gradually enhanced hemolysis of human red blood cells and antiprotozoan activity against Leishmania major, bacteria displayed a more complex behavior. The gram-positive organism Staphylococcus aureus was most sensitive to intermediate acyl chains, while longer acyls gradually led to a total loss of activity. All acyl derivatives were detrimental to activity against Escherichia coli, namely, but not solely, because of peptide aggregation. Although aminoacyl derivatives behaved essentially similarly to the nonaminated acyls, they displayed reduced hydrophobicity, and consequently, the long-chain acyls enhanced activity against all microorganisms (e.g., by up to 12-fold for the aminolauryl derivative) but were significantly less hemolytic than their acyl counterparts. Acylation also enhanced bactericidal kinetics and peptide resistance to plasma proteases. The similarities and differences upon acylation of MSI-78 and LL37 are presented and discussed. Overall, the data suggest an approach that can be used to enhance the potencies of acylated short antimicrobial peptides by preventing hydrophobic interactions that lead to self-assembly in solution and, thus, to inefficacy against cell wall-containing target cells.
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Antimicrobial Investigation, Department of Biotechnology & Food Engineering, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel.
authors.forename: Inna S
authors.initials: IS
authors.lastname: Radzishevsky
authors.forename: Shahar
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Rotem
authors.forename: Fadia
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Zaknoon
authors.forename: Leonid
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Gaidukov
authors.forename: Arie
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Dagan
authors.forename: Amram
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Mor
mesh_terms: D000215:Acylation; D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D049148:Aminoacylation; D029845:Amphibian Proteins / Q000737:chemistry / Q000494:pharmacology; D000818:Animals; D000890:Anti-Infective Agents / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000494:pharmacology; D023181:Antimicrobial Cationic Peptides / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000494:pharmacology; D004926:Escherichia coli / Q000187:drug effects*; D006801:Humans; D057927:Hydrophobic and Hydrophilic Interactions; D018320:Leishmania major / Q000187:drug effects*; D008826:Microbial Sensitivity Tests; D021261:Parasitic Sensitivity Tests; D013211:Staphylococcus aureus / Q000187:drug effects*; D013329:Structure-Activity Relationship; D054804:Cathelicidins
chemical_list: D029845:Amphibian Proteins; D000890:Anti-Infective Agents; D023181:Antimicrobial Cationic Peptides; C070905:dermaseptin; C093828:pexiganan; D054804:Cathelicidins