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Updated: Jul 23, 2025

Antimicrobial Peptides Produced by Selective Pressure Incorporation of Non-canonical Amino Acids
Published on: May 4, 2018
Effectors of the Type VI Secretion System Have the Potential to Be Modified into Antimicrobial Peptides
Wenjia Lu1,2,3,4,5, Hao Lu1,2,3,4,5, Chenchen Wang1,2,3,4,5
1National Key Laboratory of Agricultural Microbiology, College of Veterinary Medicine, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, Hubei, China.
Abstract:
The use of antibiotics has led to the emergence of multidrug-resistant (MDR) bacteria, and there is an urgent need to find alternative treatments to alleviate this pressure. The type VI secretion system (T6SS) is a protein delivery system present in bacterial cells that secretes effectors that participate in bacterial virulence. Given the potential for the transformation of these effectors into antimicrobial peptides (AMPs), we designed T6SS effectors into AMPs that have a membrane-disrupting effect. These effectors kill bacteria by altering the membrane potential and increasing the intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) content. Moreover, AMPs also have a significant therapeutic effect both in vivo and in vitro. This finding suggests that it is possible to modify bacterial components of bacteria themselves to create compounds that fight bacteria. IMPORTANCE This study first identified and modified the T6SS effector into positively charged alpha-helical peptides. These peptides have good antibacterial and bactericidal effects on G+ bacteria and G- bacteria. This study broadens the source of AMPs and makes T6SS effectors more useful.
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