In Vitro Characterization of Human Peptide Transporter hPEPT1 Interactions and Passive Permeation Studies of Short Cationic Antimicrobial Peptides

Flexible and Biocompatible Antifouling Polyurethane Surfaces Incorporating Tethered Antimicrobial Peptides through Click Reactions

Efficient, simple antibacterial materials to combat implant-associated infections are much in demand. Herein, the development of polyurethanes, both cross-linked thermoset and flexible and versatile thermoplastic, suitable for "click on demand" attachment of antibacterial compounds enabled via incorporation of an alkyne-containing diol monomer in the polymer backbone, is described. By employing different polyolic polytetrahydrofurans, isocyanates, and chain extenders, a robust and flexible material comparable to commercial thermoplastic polyurethane is prepared. A series of short synthetic antimicrobial peptides are designed, synthesized, and covalently attached in a single coupling step to generate a homogenous coating. The lead material is shown to be biocompatible and does not display any toxicity against either mouse fibroblasts or reconstructed human epidermis according to ISO and OECD guidelines. The repelling performance of the peptide-coated materials is illustrated against colonization and biofilm formation by Staphylococcus aureus and Staphylococcus epidermidis on coated plastic films and finally, on coated commercial central venous catheters employing LIVE/DEAD staining, confocal laser scanning microscopy, and bacterial counts. This study presents the successful development of a versatile and scalable polyurethane with the potential for use in the medical field to reduce the impact of bacterial biofilms.

Antimicrobial Peptides Incorporating Halogenated Marine-Derived Amino Acid Substituents

Small synthetic mimics of cationic antimicrobial peptides represent a promising class of compounds with leads in clinical development for the treatment of persistent microbial infections. The activity and selectivity of these compounds rely on a balance between hydrophobic and cationic components, and here, we explore the activity of 19 linear cationic tripeptides against five different pathogenic bacteria and fungi, including clinical isolates. The compounds incorporated modified hydrophobic amino acids inspired by motifs often found in bioactive marine secondary metabolites in combination with different cationic residues to probe the possibility of generating active compounds with improved safety profiles. Several of the compounds displayed high activity (low μM concentrations), comparable with the positive controls AMC-109, amoxicillin, and amphotericin B. A higher activity was observed against the fungal strains, and a low in vitro off-target toxicity was observed against erythrocytes and HeLa cells, thereby illustrating effective means for tuning the activity and selectivity of short antimicrobial peptides.

Effect of regio- and stereoisomerism on antifouling 2,5-diketopiperazines

Marine biofouling is a problem that plagues all maritime industries at vast economic and environmental cost. Previous and current methods to prevent biofouling have employed the use of heavy metals and other toxic or highly persistent chemicals, and these methods are now coming under immense regulatory pressure. Recent studies have illustrated the potential of nature-inspired tetrasubstituted 2,5-diketopiperazines (2,5-DKPs) as eco-friendly marine biocides for biofouling control. These highly active symmetrically substituted 2,5-DKPs can be generated by combining structural motifs from cationic innate defence peptides and natural marine antifoulants. A balance between a threshold hydrophobic contribution and sufficient cationic charge has been established as key for bioactivity, and our current study further increases understanding of the antifouling mechanism by investigating the effect of both regio- and stereochemistry. Novel synthetic routes for the generation of unsymmetrical 2,5-DKPs were developed and a library of nine compounds was prepared. The compounds were screened against a series of four model macrofouling organisms (Ciona savignyi, Mytilus galloprovincialis, Spirobranchus cariniferus, and Undaria pinnatifida). Several of the evaluated compounds displayed inhibitory activity at sub-micromolar concentrations. The structural contributions to antifouling bioactivity were studied using NMR spectroscopy and molecular modelling, revealing a strong dependence on a stable amphiphilic solution structure regardless of substitution pattern.

Antimicrobial Peptide Mimics for Clinical Use: Does Size Matter?

The search for efficient antimicrobial therapies that can alleviate suffering caused by infections from resistant bacteria is more urgent than ever before. Infections caused by multi-resistant pathogens represent a significant and increasing burden to healthcare and society and researcher are investigating new classes of bioactive compounds to slow down this development. Antimicrobial peptides from the innate immune system represent one promising class that offers a potential solution to the antibiotic resistance problem due to their mode of action on the microbial membranes. However, challenges associated with pharmacokinetics, bioavailability and off-target toxicity are slowing down the advancement and use of innate defensive peptides. Improving the therapeutic properties of these peptides is a strategy for reducing the clinical limitations and synthetic mimics of antimicrobial peptides are emerging as a promising class of molecules for a variety of antimicrobial applications. These compounds can be made significantly shorter while maintaining, or even improving antimicrobial properties, and several downsized synthetic mimics are now in clinical development for a range of infectious diseases. A variety of strategies can be employed to prepare these small compounds and this review describes the different compounds developed to date by adhering to a minimum pharmacophore based on an amphiphilic balance between cationic charge and hydrophobicity. These compounds can be made as small as dipeptides, circumventing the need for large compounds with elaborate three-dimensional structures to generate simplified and potent antimicrobial mimics for a range of medical applications. This review highlight key and recent development in the field of small antimicrobial peptide mimics as a promising class of antimicrobials, illustrating just how small you can go.

Stereochemical Effects on the Antimicrobial Properties of Tetrasubstituted 2,5-Diketopiperazines

Antimicrobial drug resistance is a looming health crisis facing us in the modern era, and new drugs are urgently needed to combat this growing problem. Synthetic mimics of antimicrobial peptides have recently emerged as a promising class of compounds for the treatment of persistent microbial infections. In the current study, we investigate five cyclic N-alkylated amphiphilic 2,5-diketopiperazines against 15 different strains of bacteria and fungi, including drug-resistant clinical isolates. Several of the 2,5-diketopiperazines displayed activities similar or superior to antibiotics currently in clinical use, with activities coupled to both the cationic and hydrophobic substituents. All possible stereoisomers of the lead peptide were prepared, and the effects of stereochemistry and amphiphilicity were investigated via 1D and 2D NMR spectroscopy, solution dynamics, and membrane interaction modeling. Clear differences in solution structures and membrane interaction potentials explain the differences seen in the bioactivity and physicochemical properties of each stereoisomer.

Towards eco-friendly marine antifouling biocides - Nature inspired tetrasubstituted 2,5-diketopiperazines

Marine biofouling plagues all maritime industries at vast economic and environmental cost. Previous and most current methods to control biofouling have employed highly persistent toxins and heavy metals, including tin, copper, and zinc. These toxic methods are resulting in unacceptable environmental harm and are coming under immense regulatory pressure. Eco-friendly alternatives are urgently required to effectively mitigate the negative consequence of biofouling without causing collateral harm. Amphiphilic micropeptides have recently been shown to exhibit excellent broad-spectrum antifouling activity, with a non-toxic mode of action and innate biodegradability. The present work focused on incorporating the pharmacophore derived from amphiphilic micropeptides into a 2,5-diketopiperazine (DKP) scaffold. This privileged structure is present in a vast number of natural products, including marine natural product antifoulants, and provides advantages of synthetic accessibility and adaptability. A novel route to symmetrical tetrasubstituted DKPs was developed and a library of amphiphilic 2,5-DKPs were subsequently synthesised. These biodegradable compounds were demonstrated to be potent marine antifoulants displaying broad-spectrum activity in the low micromolar range against a range of common marine fouling organisms. The outcome of planned coating and field trials will dictate the future development of the lead compounds.

An overview of in vitro, ex vivo and in vivo models for studying the transport of drugs across intestinal barriers

Oral administration is the most commonly used route for drug delivery owing to its cost-effectiveness, ease of administration, and high patient compliance. However, the absorption of orally delivered compounds is a complex process that greatly depends on the interplay between the characteristics of the drug/formulation and the gastrointestinal tract. In this contribution, we review the different preclinical models (in vitro, ex vivo and in vivo) from their development to application for studying the transport of drugs across intestinal barriers. This review also discusses the advantages and disadvantages of each model. Furthermore, the authors have reviewed the selection and validation of these models and how the limitations of the models can be addressed in future investigations. The correlation and predictability of the intestinal transport data from the preclinical models and human data are also explored. With the increasing popularity and prevalence of orally delivered drugs/formulations, sophisticated preclinical models with higher predictive capacity for absorption of oral formulations used in clinical studies will be needed.

In vitro and in vivo antibacterial properties of peptide AMC-109 impregnated wound dressings and gels

Synthetic mimics of antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) is a promising class of molecules for a variety of antimicrobial applications. Several hurdles must be passed before effective systemic infection therapies with AMPs can be achieved, but the path to effective topical treatment of skin, nail, and soft tissue infections appears less challenging to navigate. Skin and soft tissue infection is closely coupled to the emergence of antibiotic resistance and represents a major burden to the healthcare system. The present study evaluates the promising synthetic cationic AMP mimic, AMC-109, for treatment of skin infections in vivo. The compound is evaluated both in impregnated cotton wound dressings and in a gel formulation against skin infections caused by Staphylococcus aureus and methicillin resistant S. aureus. Both the ability to prevent colonization and formation of an infection, as well as eradicate an ongoing infection in vivo with a high bacterial load, were evaluated. The present work demonstrates that AMC-109 displays a significantly higher antibacterial activity with up to a seven-log reduction in bacterial loads compared to current clinical standard therapy; Altargo cream (1% retapamulin) and Fucidin cream (2% fusidic acid) in the in vivo wound models. It is thus concluded that AMC-109 represents a promising entry in the development of new and effective remedies for various skin infections.

Impact of non-proteinogenic amino acids in the discovery and development of peptide therapeutics

With the development of modern chemistry and biology, non-proteinogenic amino acids (NPAAs) have become a powerful tool for developing peptide-based drug candidates. Drug-like properties of peptidic medicines, due to the smaller size and simpler structure compared to large proteins, can be changed fundamentally by introducing NPAAs in its sequence. While peptides composed of natural amino acids can be used as drug candidates, the majority have shown to be less stable in biological conditions. The impact of NPAA incorporation can be extremely beneficial in improving the stability, potency, permeability, and bioavailability of peptide-based therapies. Conversely, undesired effects such as toxicity or immunogenicity should also be considered. The impact of NPAAs in the development of peptide-based therapeutics is reviewed in this article. Further, numerous examples of peptides containing NPAAs are presented to highlight the ongoing development in peptide-based therapeutics.

Correlation between hemolytic activity, cytotoxicity and systemic in vivo toxicity of synthetic antimicrobial peptides

The use of non-standard toxicity models is a hurdle in the early development of antimicrobial peptides towards clinical applications. Herein we report an extensive in vitro and in vivo toxicity study of a library of 24 peptide-based antimicrobials with narrow spectrum activity towards veterinary pathogens. The haemolytic activity of the compounds was evaluated against four different species and the relative sensitivity against the compounds was highest for canine erythrocytes, intermediate for rat and human cells and lowest for bovine cells. Selected peptides were additionally evaluated against HeLa, HaCaT and HepG2 cells which showed increased stability towards the peptides. Therapeutic indexes of 50–500 suggest significant cellular selectivity in comparison to bacterial cells. Three peptides were administered to rats in intravenous acute dose toxicity studies up to 2–8 × MIC. None of the injected compounds induced any systemic toxic effects in vivo at the concentrations employed illustrating that the correlation between the different assays is not obvious. This work sheds light on the in vitro and in vivo toxicity of this class of promising compounds and provides insights into the relationship between the different toxicity models often employed in different manners to evaluate the toxicity of novel bioactive compounds in general.

Oral delivery of protein-based therapeutics: Gastroprotective strategies, physiological barriers and in vitro permeability prediction

The number of biological molecules emerging as therapeutics is growing exponentially due to their higher specificity and tolerability profiles compared to small molecules. Despite this, their traditionally parenteral delivery often results in poor patient compliance and incomplete treatment. Current research is focussed on developing effective oral delivery strategies to facilitate administration of these biomolecules, however no universal method exists to simultaneously provide gastric protection as well as enhance transport across the gastrointestinal epithelium. Furthermore, for efficient formulation development it is imperative that we can reliably analyse permeability of biomolecules through the gastrointestinal tract, highlighting the importance of the continual development and ongoing evaluation of in vitro predictive permeability tools. Here, we review the physiological obstacles associated with peptide and protein delivery throughout the gastrointestinal tract. Furthermore, we highlight methods utilised to circumvent these barriers and promote improved intestinal permeability. Lastly, we explore in vitro models employed to predict epithelial transport. Key findings highlight the need to carefully understand gastrointestinal physiology, allowing specific engineering of oral delivery systems for biomolecules. Significant importance is placed upon understanding enzymatic degradation susceptibility as well as uptake mechanisms for particulate and protein-based therapeutics for the development of successful oral protein delivery platforms.

Directed C(sp3)-H arylation of tryptophan: transformation of the directing group into an activated amide

The aminoquinoline-directed C–H activation was used to synthezise unnatural tryptophans for solid phase peptide synthesis for the first time.

The 8-aminoquinoline (8AQ) directed C(sp³)–H functionalization was applied in the synthesis of β-arylated tryptophan derivatives. The laborious protecting group reorganization towards α-amino acids compatible for solid phase peptide synthesis (SPPS) was cut short by the transformation of the directing group into an activated amide, which was either used directly in peptide coupling or in the gram scale synthesis of storable Fmoc-protected amino acids for SPPS. In this work, directed C–H activation and nonplanar amide chemistry complement each other for the synthesis of hybrids between phenylalanine and tryptophan with restricted side chain mobility.

Very Short and Stable Lactoferricin-Derived Antimicrobial Peptides: Design Principles and Potential Uses

The alarming rate at which micro-organisms are developing resistance to conventional antibiotics represents one of the global challenges of our time. There is currently ample space in the antibacterial drug pipeline, and scientists are trying to find innovative and novel strategies to target the microbial enemies. Nature has remained a source of inspiration for most of the antibiotics developed and used, and the immune molecules produced by the innate defense systems, as a first line of defense, have been heralded as the next source of antibiotics. Most living organisms produce an arsenal of antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) to rapidly fend off intruding pathogens, and several different attempts have been made to transform this versatile group of compounds into the next generation of antibiotics. However, faced with the many hurdles of using peptides as drugs, the success of these defense molecules as therapeutics remains to be realized. AMPs derived from the proteolytic degradation of the innate defense protein lactoferrin have been shown to display several favorable antimicrobial properties. In an attempt to investigate the biological and pharmacological properties of these much shorter AMPs, the sequence dependence was investigated, and it was shown, through a series of truncation experiments, that these AMPs in fact can be prepared as tripeptides, with improved antimicrobial activity, via the incorporation of unnatural hydrophobic residues and terminal cappings. In this Account, we describe how this class of promising cationic tripeptides has been developed to specifically address the main challenges limiting the general use of AMPs. This has been made possible through the identification of the antibacterial pharmacophore and via the incorporation of a range of unnatural hydrophobic and cationic amino acids. Incorporation of these residues at selected positions has allowed us to extensively establish how these compounds interact with the major proteolytic enzymes trypsin and chymotrypsin and also the two major drug-binding plasma proteins serum albumin and α-1 glycoprotein. Several of the challenges associated with using AMPs relate to their size, susceptibility to rapid proteolytic degradation, and poor oral bioavailability. Our studies have addressed these issues in detail, and the results have allowed us to effectively design and prepare active and metabolically stable AMPs that have been evaluated in a range of functional settings. The optimized short AMPs display inhibitory activities against a plethora of micro-organisms at low micromolar concentrations, and they have been shown to target resistant strains of both bacteria and fungi alike with a very rapid mode of action. Our Account further describes how these compounds behave in in vivo experiments and highlights both the challenges and possibilities of the intriguing compounds. In several areas, they have been shown to exhibit comparable or superior activity to established antibacterial, antifungal, and antifouling commercial products. This illustrates their ability to effectively target and eradicate various microbes in a variety of settings ranging from the ocean to the clinic.

Biomimetic PVPA in vitro model for estimation of the intestinal drug permeability using fasted and fed state simulated intestinal fluids

A prerequisite for successful oral drug therapy is the drug's ability to cross the gastrointestinal barrier. Considering the increasing number of new chemical entities in modern drug discovery, reliable and fast in vitro models are required for early and efficient prediction of intestinal permeability. To mimic the intestinal environment, use of biorelevant media may provide valuable information on in vivo drug permeation. The present study aims at improving the novel biomimetic phospholipid vesicle-based permeation assay's (PVPAbiomimetic) biorelevance by investigating the applicability of the biorelevant media; fasted state simulated intestinal fluid (FaSSIF) and fed state simulated intestinal fluid (FeSSIF). The FaSSIF and FeSSIF's influence on the permeability of the model drugs acyclovir, indomethacin, griseofulvin and nadolol was then assessed. The barriers' robustness in terms of storage stability was also evaluated. The barriers were found to maintain their integrity in presence of FaSSIF and FeSSIF. The model drugs showed changes in permeability in presence of the different simulated intestinal fluids that were in agreement with previous reports. Moreover, the barrier showed improved storage stability by maintaining its integrity for 6months. Altogether, this study moves the PVPAbiomimetic an important step towards a better in vitro permeability model for use in drug development.

In vitro methods in drug transporter interaction assessment

Drug transporter proteins recruit to pharmacological barrier tissues and profoundly affect the ADME properties of a large number of drugs. In vitro assays optimized for drug transporters have grown into routine tools in the determination of molecular level interactions as well as prediction of barrier penetration and system level pharmacokinetics. Regulatory position mandates increasing interest in the application of these assays during drug development.

Evaluation of cationic micropeptides derived from the innate immune system as inhibitors of marine biofouling

A series of 13 short synthetic amphiphilic cationic micropeptides, derived from the antimicrobial iron-binding innate defence protein lactoferrin, have been evaluated for their capacity to inhibit the marine fouling process. The whole biofouling process was studied and microfouling organisms such as marine bacteria and microalgae were included as well as the macrofouling barnacle Balanus improvisus. In total 19 different marine fouling organisms (18 microfoulers and one macrofouler) were included and both the adhesion and growth of the microfoulers were investigated. It was shown that the majority of the peptides inhibited barnacle cyprid settlement via a reversible nontoxic mechanism, with IC50 values as low as 0.5 μg ml(-1). Six peptides inhibited adhesion and growth of microorganisms. Two of these were particularly active against the microfoulers with MIC-values ranging between 0.01 and 1 μg ml(-1), which is comparable with the commercial reference antifoulant SeaNine.

The bromotyrosine derivative ianthelline isolated from the arctic marine sponge Stryphnus fortis inhibits marine micro- and macrobiofouling

The inhibition of marine biofouling by the bromotyrosine derivative ianthelline, isolated from the Arctic marine sponge Stryphnus fortis, is described. All major stages of the fouling process are investigated. The effect of ianthelline on adhesion and growth of marine bacteria and microalgae is tested to investigate its influence on the initial microfouling process comparing with the known marine antifoulant barettin as a reference. Macrofouling is studied via barnacle (Balanus improvisus) settlement assays and blue mussel (Mytilus edulis) phenoloxidase inhibition. Ianthelline is shown to inhibit both marine micro- and macrofoulers with a pronounced effect on marine bacteria (minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) values 0.1-10 μg/mL) and barnacle larval settlement (IC50 = 3.0 μg/mL). Moderate effects are recorded on M. edulis (IC50 = 45.2 μg/mL) and microalgae, where growth is more affected than surface adhesion. The effect of ianthelline is also investigated against human pathogenic bacteria. Ianthelline displayed low micromolar MIC values against several bacterial strains, both Gram positive and Gram negative, down to 2.5 μg/mL. In summary, the effect of ianthelline on 20 different representative marine antifouling organisms and seven human pathogenic bacterial strains is presented.

MabCent: Arctic marine bioprospecting in Norway

The deep waters surrounding the coastline of the northern parts of Norway represent an exciting biotope for marine exploration. Dark and cold Arctic water generates a hostile environment where the ability to adapt is crucial to survival. These waters are nonetheless bountiful and a diverse plethora of marine organisms thrive in these extreme conditions, many with the help of specialised chemical compounds. In comparison to warmer, perhaps more inviting shallower tropical waters, the Arctic region has not been as thoroughly investigated. MabCent is a Norwegian initiative based in Tromsø that aims to change this. Since 2007, scientists within MabCent have focussed their efforts on the study of marine organisms inhabiting the Arctic waters with the long term goal of novel drug discovery and development. The activities of MabCent are diverse and range from sampling the Arctic ice shelf to the chemical synthesis of promising secondary metabolites discovered during the screening process. The current review will present the MabCent pipeline from isolation to identification of new bioactive marine compounds via an extensive screening process. An overview of the main activities will be given with particular focus on isolation strategies, bioactivity screening and structure determination. Pitfalls, hard earned lessons and the results so far are also discussed.

The tandem chain extension aldol reaction used for synthesis of ketomethylene tripeptidomimetics targeting hPEPT1

The rationale for targeting the human di-/tripeptide transporter hPEPT1 for oral drug delivery has been well established by several drug and prodrug cases. The aim of this study was to synthesize novel ketomethylene modified tripeptidomimetics and to investigate their binding affinity for hPEPT1. Three related tripeptidomimetics of the structure H-Phe-ψ[COCH(2)]-Ser(Bz)-X(aa)-OH were synthesized applying the tandem chain extension aldol reaction, where amino acid derived β-keto imides were stereoselectively converted to α-substituted γ-keto imides. In addition, three corresponding tripeptides, composed of amide bonds, were synthesized for comparison of binding affinities. The six investigated compounds were all defined as high affinity ligands (K(i)-values <0.5 mM) for hPEPT1 by measuring the concentration dependent inhibition of apical [(14)C]Gly-Sar uptake in Caco-2 cells. Consequently, the ketomethylene replacement for the natural amide bond and α-side chain modifications appears to offer a promising strategy to modify tripeptidic structures while maintaining a high affinity for hPEPT1.