Nanostructures as promising tools for delivery of antimicrobial peptides

Antimicrobial peptides have been extensively investigated for their potential applications as therapeutics and food biopreservatives. The antimicrobial activity may be impaired by the susceptibility for proteolytic degradation and undesirable interactions of the antimicrobial peptide in the biological environment. Development of nanostructures for entrapment and delivery of antimicrobial peptides may represent an alternative to the direct application of these substances. Lipid nanovesicles have been developed for encapsulation of antimicrobial peptides. Phosphatidylcholine is often employed in liposome manufacture, which is mostly achieved by the thin-film hydration method. Nanofibers may allow different physical modes of drug loading, including direct adsorption on the nanofiber surface or the assembly of drug-loaded nanoparticles. Self-assembled peptides reveal attractive features as nanostructures for applications in drug delivery and promising as antimicrobial agent for treatment of brain infections. Magnetic nanoparticles and nanotubules are also potential structures for entrapment of antimicrobial peptides. Nanoparticles can be also chemically modified with specific cell surface ligands to enhance cell adhesion and site specific delivery. This article reviews the most important nanostructures as promising tools for peptide delivery systems.