Open AccessRe-engineering Antimicrobial Peptides into Oncolytics Targeting Drug-Resistant Ovarian Cancers
Author(s) -
Matthew R. Aronson,
Erika S. Dahl,
Jacob A. Halle,
Andrew Simonson,
Rose A. Gogal,
Adam B. Glick,
Katherine M. Aird,
Scott H. Medina
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
cellular and molecular bioengineering
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.668
H-Index - 34
eISSN - 1865-5033
pISSN - 1865-5025
DOI - 10.1007/s12195-020-00626-z
Subject(s) - antimicrobial peptides , biology , peptide , cancer cell , cancer research , computational biology , cancer , biochemistry , genetics
Bacteria and cancer cells share a common trait-both possess an electronegative surface that distinguishes them from healthy mammalian counterparts. This opens opportunities to repurpose antimicrobial peptides (AMPs), which are cationic amphiphiles that kill bacteria by disrupting their anionic cell envelope, into anticancer peptides (ACPs). To test this assertion, we investigate the mechanisms by which a pathogen-specific AMP, originally designed to kill bacterial Tuberculosis, potentiates the lytic destruction of drug-resistant cancers and synergistically enhances chemotherapeutic potency.