Abstract
Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) are emerging as important players in the fight against antibiotic resistance. In parallel, the field of microfluidics has matured and its benefits are being exploited in applications of biomimetics and standardized testing. Membrane models are essential tools extensively utilized in studying the activity and modes of action of AMPs. Here, we describe how the utilization of microfluidic platforms in characterizing membrane active peptides can develop a reliable colorful image that classical techniques have rendered black and white.
Highlights
Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) have been heavily promoted as a promising class of antibiotics that can circumvent typical resistance mechanisms.[1]
The field of microfluidics has matured and its benefits are being exploited in applications of biomimetics and standardized testing
The move to quantitative imaging techniques has become essential in revealing the mechanistic information for peptide activity hidden at the single vesicle or cell level. When it comes to lipid models in the microscopic range, giant unilamellar vesicles (GUVs) are key, with diameters ranging between 1 and 100 μm.[9]
Summary
Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) have been heavily promoted as a promising class of antibiotics that can circumvent typical resistance mechanisms.[1]. A peptide’s sequence has an important role in defining its membrane disruption mechanism, though it is widely assumed that any cationic peptide can demonstrate antimicrobial activity.[4]. The all-or-none mode can be confused with the graded partial transient leakage mode, since both modes can describe the same leakage trace. The latter has been reported as transient observations entailing a burst of vesicle leakages occurring immediately after contact with a peptide, followed by cessation of observed leakage.[3,8] In essence, characterizing the membranolytic activity of peptides is not trivial and has challenged researchers, who have had to rely on multiple assays to build an understanding of the issues at play
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