Title
Small Synthetic Peptides Bioconjugated to Hybrid Gold Nanoparticles Destroy Potentially Deadly Bacteria in Submicromolar Concentration
Author
Gianna Palmieri, Rosarita Tatè, Marta Gogliettino, Marco Balestrieri, Ilaria Rea, Monica Terracciano, Yolande Therese Proroga, Federico Capuano, Aniello Anastasio, Luca De Stefano
Year
2018
Journal
Bioconjugate Chemistry
Abstract
Synthetic antibacterial peptides are advanced weapons that scientists design and produce facing current treats due to harmful and mortal pathogens, which could affect humans in everyday life. Recently, many small amino acid sequences, greatly efficient in the antibacterial action, have been reported in the literature. To date, only few synthetic peptides, acting in micromolar or even tenths of micromolar concentration, are on the market as commercial products, mainly due to the high cost of production. In this context, material science can give a fundamental help by engineering small synthetic peptides, powered by hybrid gold nanoparticles, which have been found to strongly enhance the antimicrobial activity against bacterial infections. Submicromolar concentrations of the 1018K6 peptide, bioconjugated to hybrid polymer-gold nanoparticles, kill almost 100% of pathogen bacteria, such as Listeria and Salmonella genera, paving the way to economically sustainable commercial products based on this synthetic nanocomplex.
Instrument
J-810, FP-8200
Keywords
Circular dichroism, Secondary structure, Nanostructures, Chemical stability, Materials, Biochemistry, Fluorescence, Protein structure, Ligand binding