Antimicrobial and pro-angiogenic properties of soluble and nanoparticle-immobilized LL37 peptides.

Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs), such as LL37 peptides, may be immobilized on the surface of medical devices to render them with antimicrobial and angiogenic properties. However, little is known about LL37 properties after immobilization. Here, we have studied the antimicrobial and pro-angiogenic activity of soluble and immobilized LL37 peptides (conjugated to gold nanoparticles).

UV Light-Responsive Peptide-Based Supramolecular Hydrogel for Controlled Drug Delivery.

Low-molecular-weight self-assembled peptides may serve as promising hydrogelators for drug delivery applications by changing their structural network in response to external stimuli. Herein, inspired by the well-studied low-molecular-weight peptide hydrogelator, fluorenyl-methoxycarbonyl-diphenylalanine (Fmoc-FF), a novel peptide is designed and synthesized to include an ultraviolet (UV)-sensitive phototrigger. Similar to Fmoc-FF, 6-nitroveratryloxycarbonyl-diphenylalanine (Nvoc-FF) self-assembles to form a 3D, self-supporting, nanofibrous hydrogel.

Atomistic-Level Investigation of a LL37-Conjugated Gold Nanoparticle By Well-Tempered Metadynamics.

LL37 is a cathelicidin-derived antimicrobial peptide (AMP) with a broad spectrum of antimicrobial activity and wound-healing potential. The enhancement of these characteristics was recently demonstrated for a cysteine (CYS)-modified cathelicidin-derived LL37-SH conjugated with gold nanoparticles (AuNPs). Considering the potential of this peptide, we hereby report a computational study in which well-tempered metadynamics was applied to unveil the interaction of LL37-SH and LL37 with a AuNP with atomistic detail.

Antimicrobial peptide-gold nanoscale therapeutic formulation with high skin regenerative potential.

Chronic skin wounds affect ≈3% of persons aged >60years (Davies et al., 2007) [1]. These wounds are typically difficult to heal by conventional therapies and in many cases they get infected making even harder the regeneration process.

One-step synthesis of high-density peptide-conjugated gold nanoparticles with antimicrobial efficacy in a systemic infection model.

The increase in antibiotic drug resistance and the low number of new antibacterial drugs approved in the last few decades requires the development of new antimicrobial strategies. Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) are very promising molecules to fight microbial infection since they kill quickly bacteria and, in some cases, target bacterial membrane. Although some AMPs may be stable against proteolytic degradation by chemical modification, in general, low AMP activity and stability in the presence of serum and proteolytic enzymes as well as their cytotoxicity have impaired their clinical translation.

PLGA nanoparticles loaded with host defense peptide LL37 promote wound healing.

Wound treatment remains one of the most prevalent and economically burdensome healthcare issues in the world. Poly (lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA) supplies lactate that accelerates neovascularization and promotes wound healing. LL37 is an endogenous human host defense peptide that modulates wound healing and angiogenesis and fights infection.