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Antibiotic resistance Natural antimicrobial compounds Bacteriophages Essential oils Lectins Bacteriocins SurfactantsNow antibiotics occupy a leading place in the therapy of a wide range of infectious diseases. Antibiotics are characterized by a wide spectrum of action, affecting not only pathogenic microorganisms, but also the normal human microbiota, so their use brings more harm than good. In addition, the uncontrolled use of antibiotics, non-compliance with therapeutic doses and the irrational selection of antimicrobial substances cause the spread of antibiotic resistance. Nowadays, even the newest generations of antibiotics are not able to inhibit multi-resistant strains and in-hospital pathogens.Antimicrobial substances of natural origin, such as bacteriocins, surfactants, lectins and essential oils, as well as bacteriophages, can become a worthy substitute for antibiotics. These compounds are non-toxic and characterized by purposeful action. Most of them, besides antimicrobial action, are characterized by anti-adhesive, immunomodulatory properties, have antitumor activity, which makes them much more attractive for further study than antibiotics.However, antimicrobial preparations alternative to antibiotics also have some disadvantages. Thus, research on phages is a complicated process, in addition, the action of bacteriophages is not fully disclosed in details. Essential oils are more likely to be replaced by antibiotics, but their effective concentration is quite high (up to several mg/ml). Lectins are less studied as antimicrobial agents compared with other substances (their anti-tumor and anti-viral effects are more studied). The most promising antimicrobial compounds are bacteriocins and surfactantsnatural compounds whose effective concentrations are fairly low (several μg/ml), including in relation to multi-resistant pathogens and methicillin-resistant staphylococci, which has lost sensitivity to antibiotics.

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