Characterizing the roll of the cell wall in pore formation by antimicrobial peptides

Abstract

Given the rise in pathogenic bacteria resistant to all commercially available antibiotics, there is an urgent need both to develop new antimicrobial compounds and identify effective bacterial targets. Looking to nature for ideas on how to eliminate invading bacteria, antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) are produced as part of many different species' nonspecific immune responses. Several classes of AMPs selectively target bacterial membranes, which have been identified as a good target for new antibiotics.