Bacteriocins as an alternative in the treatment of infections by Staphylococcus aureus

Abstract

Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) is a highly versatile Gram-positive bacterium that is carried asymptomatically by up to 30% of healthy people, while being a major cause of healthcare-associated infections, making it a worldwide problem in clinical medicine. The adaptive evolution of S. aureus strains is demonstrated by its remarkable capacity to promptly develop high resistance to multiple antibiotics, thus limiting treatment choice. Nowadays, there is a continuous demand for an alternative to the use of antibiotics for S. aureus infections and a strategy to control the spread or to kill phylogenetically related strains. In this scenario, bacteriocins fi t as with a promising and interesting alternative. These molecules are produced by a range of bacteria, defi ned as ribosomally synthesized peptides with bacteriostatic or bactericidal activity against a wide range of pathogens. This work reviews ascertained the main antibiotic-resistance mechanisms of S. aureus strains and the current, informative content concerning the applicability of the use of bacteriocins overlapping the use of conventional antibiotics in the context of S. aureus infections. Besides, we highlight the possible application of these biomolecules on an industrial scale in future work.

Partial Purification and Characterization of Bacteriocin-Like Inhibitory Substances Produced by Streptomyces sp. Isolated from the Gut of Chanos chanos

“…Evaluation of the temperature stability of BLIS was performed by dissolving all of the fractions in deionized water and then incubating the resulting solutions at 60, 80, or 100°C for 30 min or 121°C for 15 min. The solutions were cooled to room temperature and subjected to antibacterial activity tests [ 29 ]. The pH stability of BLIS was determined by adjusting the pH of the purified fractions to pH 2.0–10.0 by using 1 mol·L −1 HCl and 1 mol·L −1 NaOH as necessary and incubating for 2 h. Prior to the antibacterial activity test, the pH of the samples was set to pH 7.0.…”

Four Novel Leaderless Bacteriocins, Bacin A1, A2, A3, and A4 Exhibit Potent Antimicrobial and Antibiofilm Activities against Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus

“… Staphylococcus aureus is a commensal bacteria of the skin and nasal flora in approximately 30% of healthy humans, and it is also an important opportunistic pathogen that causes skin and soft tissue infections, bacteremia, osteomyelitis, septic arthritis, pneumonia, endocarditis, and device-related infections ( 6 – 8 ). S. aureus is a highly adaptive and versatile pathogen with the ability to evolve resistance to a variety of antibiotics and form biofilms that protect against the host immune response and antimicrobial agents ( 9 ).…”

“… S. aureus is a highly adaptive and versatile pathogen with the ability to evolve resistance to a variety of antibiotics and form biofilms that protect against the host immune response and antimicrobial agents ( 9 ). A representative example is methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA), which evolved from S. aureus after acquisition of the mecA gene from other microorganisms via horizontal gene transfer ( 8 , 10 , 11 ). Treatment of MRSA infections is challenging because of multidrug resistance to many commonly used antibiotics (virtually all β-lactam antibiotics and other classes of antibiotics, such as aminoglycosides, fluoroquinolones, and macrolides) and its protective biofilms ( 9 , 12 ).…”