Plectasin

Plectasin is an antibiotic found by Novozymes[1] in the Pezizalean fungus Pseudoplectania nigrella. Plectasin belongs to the antimicrobial peptide class called Defensins, which is also present in invertebrates such as flies and mussels. Pre-clinical tests in mice have shown promising results in that multiresistant bacteria have problems mutating resistance against plectasin,[2] which acts by directly binding the bacterial cell-wall precursor Lipid II.[3] At the end of 2008, Novozymes signed a global licensing agreement with Sanofi-Aventis for the further development and marketing of NZ2114, a derivative of plectasin, as a treatment for gram-positive bacterial infections, e.g. Streptococcus and Staphylococcus which are resistant to all existing antibiotics.[1][4]

References

  1. 1 2 "Novozymes reveals knowledge on new antibiotic against resistant bacteria". Novozymes. 2010-05-28. Retrieved 2010-05-28.
  2. ↑ "Plectasin NZ2114 - Novel Microbial Agent". Drug Development Technology. Retrieved 2010-05-28.
  3. ↑ Kristensen, HH et al. (2010). "Plectasin, a Fungal Defensin, Targets the Bacterial Cell Wall Precursor Lipid II". Science. 328 (5982): 1168–1172. doi:10.1126/science.1185723.
  4. ↑ Kristensen, HH et al. (2009). "In Vivo Pharmacodynamic Characterization of a Novel Plectasin Antibiotic, NZ2114, in a Murine Infection Model". Antimicrob Agents Chemother. 53 (7): 3003–3009. doi:10.1128/AAC.01584-08. PMC 2704636Freely accessible. PMID 19414576.


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