title: Antimicrobial dyes and mechanosensitive channels.
abstract: The search for new and effective antimicrobial agents has never been as important; however, since the discovery of antibiotics, exploring the antimicrobial activity of dyes has been forgotten. Antimicrobial dyes are an untapped resource and have the ability to potentially combat the spread of drug-resistant bacteria either alone or as antimicrobial adjuvants. The mechanosensitive ion channel of large conductance (MscL) is highly conserved and ubiquitous in bacterial species. There is evidence to suggest that at least one triphenylmethane dye acts through the highly conserved MscL channel and combining the two approaches of exploring the mechanism of action of other triphenylmethane dyes or antimicrobial dyes in general and the novel MscL target provides a new opportunity for further exploration.
authors.affiliation: School of Chemical and Physical Sciences, Flinders University, Bedford Park, SA, 5042, Australia. ramiz.boulos@flinders.edu.au
authors.forename: Ramiz A
authors.initials: RA
authors.lastname: Boulos
mesh_terms: D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000737:chemistry / Q000494:pharmacology*; D001419:Bacteria / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000378:metabolism; D004396:Coloring Agents / Q000737:chemistry / Q000494:pharmacology*; D024901:Drug Resistance, Multiple, Bacterial; D004926:Escherichia coli / Q000187:drug effects; D029968:Escherichia coli Proteins / Q000378:metabolism*; D007473:Ion Channels / Q000378:metabolism*; D040542:Mechanotransduction, Cellular / Q000187:drug effects*; D014320:Triphenylmethyl Compounds / Q000494:pharmacology*
chemical_list: D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents; D004396:Coloring Agents; D029968:Escherichia coli Proteins; D007473:Ion Channels; C086596:MscL protein, E coli; D014320:Triphenylmethyl Compounds; C046945:triphenylmethane