TITLE:
Natural Antimicrobial Peptides: Pleiotropic Molecules in Host Defense
AUTHORS:
Mercedes Leonor Sánchez, Melina María Belén Martínez, Paulo César Maffia
KEYWORDS:
Antimicrobial Peptides; Immune Response; Cathelicidins; Defensins; SLPI
JOURNAL NAME:
CellBio,
Vol.2 No.4,
December
4,
2013
ABSTRACT:
Natural antimicrobial
peptides (AMPs) are small cationic molecules that display antimicrobial
activity against a wide range of bacteria, fungi and viruses. AMPs are
multifunctional molecules that have an essential activity in infection and inflammation:
they play an important role in the innate immune response, not only as
antimicrobial agents, but also as immunomodulating molecules and as an
important link between the innate and adaptive immune response. In this article,
we will discuss the antimicrobial activity, together with the novel properties
of some of these molecules as immune modulators on the innate and adaptive
immune response.