title: Antimicrobial Peptides: Insights into Membrane Permeabilization, Lipopolysaccharide Fragmentation and Application in Plant Disease Control.
abstract: The recent increase in multidrug resistance against bacterial infections has become a major concern to human health and global food security. Synthetic antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) have recently received substantial attention as potential alternatives to conventional antibiotics because of their potent broad-spectrum antimicrobial activity. These peptides have also been implicated in plant disease control for replacing conventional treatment methods that are polluting and hazardous to the environment and to human health. Here, we report de novo design and antimicrobial studies of VG16, a 16-residue active fragment of Dengue virus fusion peptide. Our results reveal that VG16KRKP, a non-toxic and non-hemolytic analogue of VG16, shows significant antimicrobial activity against Gram-negative E. coli and plant pathogens X. oryzae and X. campestris, as well as against human fungal pathogens C. albicans and C. grubii. VG16KRKP is also capable of inhibiting bacterial disease progression in plants. The solution-NMR structure of VG16KRKP in lipopolysaccharide features a folded conformation with a centrally located turn-type structure stabilized by aromatic-aromatic packing interactions with extended N- and C-termini. The de novo design of VG16KRKP provides valuable insights into the development of more potent antibacterial and antiendotoxic peptides for the treatment of human and plant infections.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biophysics, Bose Institute, P-1/12 CIT Scheme VII (M), Kolkata 700 054, India.
authors.forename: Aritreyee
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Datta
authors.affiliation: Department of Biophysics, Bose Institute, P-1/12 CIT Scheme VII (M), Kolkata 700 054, India.
authors.forename: Anirban
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Ghosh
authors.affiliation: Department of Biotechnology and Biosciences, University of Milano-Bicocca, P.zza della Scienza 2, 2016 Milano, Italy.
authors.forename: Cristina
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Airoldi
authors.affiliation: Department of Biotechnology and Biosciences, University of Milano-Bicocca, P.zza della Scienza 2, 2016 Milano, Italy.
authors.forename: Paola
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Sperandeo
authors.affiliation: Biophysics and Department of Chemistry, University of Michigan, 930 N. University Avenue, Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109-1055, USA.
authors.forename: Kamal H
authors.initials: KH
authors.lastname: Mroue
authors.affiliation: 1] Infectious Diseases Program, CIC bioGUNE, Parque Tecnologico de Bizkaia, Building 801A, 48160 Derio, Spain [2] IKERBASQUE, Basque Foundation for Science, 48011 Bilbao, Spain.
authors.forename: Jesús
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Jiménez-Barbero
authors.affiliation: Division of Plant Biology, Bose Institute, P-1/12 CIT Scheme VII (M), Kolkata 700 054, India.
authors.forename: Pallob
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Kundu
authors.affiliation: Biophysics and Department of Chemistry, University of Michigan, 930 N. University Avenue, Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109-1055, USA.
authors.forename: Ayyalusamy
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Ramamoorthy
authors.affiliation: 1] Department of Biophysics, Bose Institute, P-1/12 CIT Scheme VII (M), Kolkata 700 054, India [2] Biophysics and Department of Chemistry, University of Michigan, 930 N. University Avenue, Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109-1055, USA.
authors.forename: Anirban
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Bhunia
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000890:Anti-Infective Agents / Q000737:chemistry / Q000494:pharmacology* / Q000633:toxicity; D023181:Antimicrobial Cationic Peptides / Q000737:chemistry / Q000494:pharmacology* / Q000633:toxicity; D002151:Calorimetry; D002175:Candida / Q000187:drug effects; D045744:Cell Line, Tumor; D002470:Cell Survival / Q000187:drug effects; D002473:Cell Wall / Q000187:drug effects / Q000378:metabolism; D003716:Dengue Virus / Q000378:metabolism; D004926:Escherichia coli / Q000187:drug effects; D006461:Hemolysis / Q000187:drug effects; D006801:Humans; D008070:Lipopolysaccharides / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism*; D009682:Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy; D008826:Microbial Sensitivity Tests; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D012275:Oryza / Q000254:growth & development / Q000378:metabolism; D010935:Plant Diseases / Q000517:prevention & control*; D011485:Protein Binding; D017434:Protein Structure, Tertiary; D014974:Xanthomonas / Q000187:drug effects
chemical_list: D000890:Anti-Infective Agents; D023181:Antimicrobial Cationic Peptides; D008070:Lipopolysaccharides