Antimicrobial properties of the skin secretions of frogs

Thashlin Govender,Abeda Dawood,David R Katerere,Adriaan J Esterhuyse

doi:10.4102/sajs.v108i5/6.795

Abstract

Antimicrobial resistance results in increased morbidity and mortality, and increased health-care costs. Therefore the need to develop new classes of antibiotics is indispensable. Antimicrobial peptides are a relatively new class of potential antibiotics which are fast acting, possess broad-spectrum activity and are able to escape many of the currently known mechanisms of drug resistance. They have been shown to be active against Gram-negative and Gram-positive bacteria, fungi, enveloped viruses and even cancer cells. However, toxicity to healthy host cells remains a concern and has affected the clinical development of therapeutics based on antimicrobial peptides. The purpose of this review is to discuss recent advances in research focused on antimicrobial peptides from frogs and the challenges in conducting research in this area in southern Africa. An extensive literature review of relevant articles published between 1980 and the present was conducted using PubMed, ScienceDirect, Sabinet, Elsevier and GoogleScholar. There has been little research done on anurans from southern Africa which are endemic to the region, and there is therefore a need to focus on this group for the purposes of bioprospecting for potentially new antimicrobial peptide compounds.

Highlights

Antibiotics have been termed the single most significant discovery in medicine
There is a need to develop new pharmacophores as lead compounds for antimicrobial research and development
Amphibian skin is a rich source of biologically active compounds that are assumed to have diverse physiological and defence functions.[20]

Summary

Introduction

Antibiotics have been termed the single most significant discovery in medicine. The discovery of penicillin by Alexander Fleming in 1929 ushered in the modern antibiotic age. The real potential for penicillin was, only recognised with the advent of the Second World War during which the antibiotic was extensively used in the treatment of septic wounds for soldiers.[1] The post-war era marked what has been termed ‘The Golden Era’ of antibiotic research and development.[2,3] This era saw an explosion in the number of antibiotic drugs available for clinical use. Even at that early stage, antibiotic resistance had already begun to emerge. Antibiotic resistance arises when resistant strains in a population are selected and become dominant over susceptible bacteria.[4]

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