Application of Antimicrobial Peptides for Disease Control in Plants

Abstract

This is an Open-Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0) which permits unrestricted non-commercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. ABSTRACT A large number of antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) from different organisms have been characterized to date. AMPs are small molecular weight proteins with broad spectrum antimicrobial activity against bacteria, viruses, and fungi. Several diseases in plants could result in serious losses and decreasing quality and safety of agricultural products. Being an agent for plant defense, AMPs kill target cells through diverse mechanisms once in a target microbial membrane. Cathelicidins, defensins and thionins are the three major groups of epidermal AMPs in human and plants. Plant AMPs are structurally and functionally diverse and can be directed against other organisms, like herbivorous insects. The biological activity of plant AMPs primarily depends on interactions with membrane lipids. Several antimicrobial peptides have been expressed in transgenic plants to confer disease protection. Antimicrobial peptides are interesting compounds that can be efficiently exploited for disease control in plants in a way that complies with the strict regulations on the efficacy and safety of disease control strategy.

Biofungicidal Potential of Neosartorya (Aspergillus) Fischeri Antifungal Protein NFAP and Novel Synthetic γ-Core Peptides

“…However, diverse, non-comprehensive international regulations regarding the agricultural application of genetically modified (GM) plants (Tagliabue, 2017) and the prevalence of an anti-GM organism attitude held by policy makers and the general public highly limit the cultivation of these breeds (Lucht, 2015). Furthermore, high production costs, limited information about the antifungal spectrum, the long-term toxic effects regarding plant development and human health are currently obstructing the direct topical application of antifungal peptides and proteins for use as biofungicides or bioprotective agents (Jung and Kang, 2014). The present study provided evidence that AP and the PD applications could be used as a safe and effective topical biofungicide.…”

The potential use of the Penicillium chrysogenum antifungal protein PAF, the designed variant PAFopt and its γ‐core peptide Pγopt in plant protection

“…In spite of the intensive in vitro and in vivo laboratory studies for potential use in the fields, only few antimicrobial peptides/proteins have been introduced to the market as a biofungicide product so far (Yan et al , 2015). The commercial development of peptide/protein‐based biofungicides still suffers from several limitations, such as high cost of production, narrow antimicrobial spectrum, susceptibility to proteolytic degradation and toxicity on mammalian or plant cells (Jung and Kang, 2014).…”

Pectobacterium brasiliense: Genomics, Host Range and Disease Management

“…With the extent of synthetic chemical compounds (incl. antibiotics) to be used in agriculture, there is a risk that these products might be hazardous to humans and/or the environment, or could lead to the development of antimicrobial resistance [ 152 , 153 , 154 ]. Additionally, these methods are not considered to be fully efficient to control SRP in the potato sector [ 150 , 155 ].…”