The use of platensimycin and platencin to fight antibiotic resistance

Adil M Allahverdiyev,1 Melahat Bagirova,1 Emrah Sefik Abamor,1 Sezen Canim Ates,1 Rabia Cakir Koc,2 Meral Miraloglu,3 Serhat Elcicek,4 Serkan Yaman,1 Gokce Unal1 1Department of Bioengineering, Yildiz Technical University, Istanbul, Turkey; 2Department of Biomedical Engineering, Yeni Yuzyil University, Istanbul, Turkey; 3Vocational School of Health Services, Cukurova University, Adana, Turkey; 4Department of Bioengineering, Firat University, Elazig, Turkey Abstract: Infectious diseases are known as one of the most life-threatening disabilities worldwide. Approximately 13 million deaths related to infectious diseases are reported each year. The only way to combat infectious diseases is by chemotherapy using antimicrobial agents and antibiotics. However, due to uncontrolled and unnecessary use of antibiotics in particular, surviving bacteria have evolved resistance against several antibiotics. Emergence of multidrug resistance in bacteria over the past several decades has resulted in one of the most important clinical health problems in modern medicine. For instance, approximately 440,000 new cases of multidrug-resistant tuberculosis are reported every year leading to the deaths of 150,000 people worldwide. Management of multidrug resistance requires understanding its molecular basis and the evolution and dissemination of resistance; development of new antibiotic compounds in place of traditional antibiotics; and innovative strategies for extending the life of antibiotic molecules. Researchers have begun to develop new antimicrobials for overcoming this important problem. Recently, platensimycin – isolated from extracts of Streptomyces platensis – and its analog platencin have been defined as promising agents for fighting multidrug resistance. In vitro and in vivo studies have shown that these new antimicrobials have great potential to inhibit methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, vancomycin-resistant enterococci, and penicillin-resistant Streptococcus pneumoniae by targeting type II fatty acid synthesis in ...