Identification of Synthetic and Natural Host Defense Peptides with Leishmanicidal Activity.
Marr. A K AK; Cen. S S; Hancock. R E W RE; McMaster. W R WR
Key Findings
- LL‑37 and synthetic peptides E6, L‑1018, and RI‑1018 kill Leishmania promastigotes and intracellular amastigotes in vitro
- The parasite protease GP63 protects Leishmania from LL‑37, E6, and L‑1018 but not from RI‑1018
- RI‑1018, E6, and LL‑37 are highlighted as promising leads for new antileishmanial treatments
Practical Outcomes
- These findings are mainly of interest for drug developers rather than DIY biohackers, as the peptides aren’t readily available and safety in humans isn’t established. However, the data suggest that targeting GP63 or using RI‑1018‑type peptides could be a future strategy for treating leishmaniasis.
Summary
The study shows that the natural peptide LL‑37 and three lab‑made peptides can kill the parasites that cause leishmaniasis in lab tests, but a parasite protein called GP63 can block some of them. One synthetic version, RI‑1018, isn’t stopped by GP63, making it especially interesting for future drug work.
Abstract
Leishmaniaparasites are a major public health problem worldwide. Effective treatment of leishmaniasis is hampered by the high incidence of adverse effects to traditional drug therapy and the emergence of resistance to current therapeutics. A vaccine is currently not available. Host defense peptides have been investigated as novel therapeutic agents against a wide range of pathogens. Here we demonstrate that the antimicrobial peptide LL-37 and the three synthetic peptides E6, L-1018, and RI-1018 exhibit leishmanicidal activity against promastigotes and intramacrophage amastigotes ofLeishmania donovaniandLeishmania major We also report that theLeishmaniaprotease/virulence factor GP63 confers protection toLeishmaniafrom the cytolytic properties of alll-form peptides (E6, L-1018, and LL-37) but not thed-form peptide RI-1018. The results suggest that RI-1018, E6, and LL-37 are promising peptides to develop further into components for antileishmanial therapy.
Study Information
pubmed
2016
2016-03-25T00:00:00.000Z
10.1128/aac.02328-15