Bioengineered Nisin A Derivatives Display Enhanced Activity against Clinical Neonatal Pathogens

Area of Science:

• Microbiology
• Infectious Diseases
• Antimicrobial Peptides

Background:

• Neonatal infections pose significant mortality and morbidity risks.
• Rising multi-drug resistance in neonatal pathogens necessitates alternative treatments.
• Nisin, an antimicrobial peptide, has broad-spectrum activity and potential synergistic effects with antibiotics.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate nisin and its derivatives against multi-drug resistant neonatal pathogens.
• To investigate synergistic antimicrobial activity between nisin peptides and antibiotics.
• To identify novel therapeutic strategies for neonatal infections.

Main Methods:

• Whole genome sequencing of resistant strains.
• Deferred antagonism assays, minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) determination, and broth-based survival assays.
• Growth and time-kill assays to assess antibiotic combinations.

Main Results:

• Nisin PV demonstrated enhanced antimicrobial activity against all tested strains.
• Nisin PV showed significantly lower MIC values compared to nisin.
• Synergistic effects were observed for nisin PV/ampicillin and nisin A/erythromycin combinations against specific strains.

Conclusions:

• Nisin derivatives exhibit potent antimicrobial activity against multi-drug resistant neonatal pathogens.
• Nisin peptides can be effectively combined with antibiotics to enhance treatment efficacy.
• Nisin-based therapies represent a promising alternative for treating neonatal infections.