The role of antimicrobial peptides in cardiovascular physiology and disease.

Antimicrobial peptides are natural peptide antibiotics, existing ubiquitously in both plant and animal kingdoms. They exhibit broad-spectrum antimicrobial activity and play an important role in host defense against invading microbes. Recently, these peptides have been shown to possess activities unrelated to direct microbial killing and be involved in the complex network of immune responses and inflammation. Thus, their role has now broadened beyond that of endogenous antibiotics. Because of their wide involvement in inflammatory response and the emerging role of inflammation in atherosclerosis, antimicrobial peptides have been proposed to represent an important link between inflammation and the pathogenesis of atherosclerotic cardiovascular diseases. This review highlights recent findings that support a role of these peptides in cardiovascular physiology and disease.