Esculentin-1a derived peptides kill Pseudomonas aeruginosa biofilm on soft contact lenses and retain antibacterial activity upon immobilization to the lens surface

Casciaro, Bruno, Dutta, Debarun, Loffredo, Maria Rosa, Marcheggiani, Stefania, McDermott, Alison, Willcox, Mark and Mangoni, Maria Luisa (2018) Esculentin-1a derived peptides kill Pseudomonas aeruginosa biofilm on soft contact lenses and retain antibacterial activity upon immobilization to the lens surface. Biopolymers: Peptide Science, 110 (5). e23074. ISSN 0006-3525

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Abstract

Contact lens (CL) wear is a risk factor for development of microbial keratitis, a vision threatening infection of the eye. Adverse events associated with colonization of lenses, especially by the multi-drug resistant and biofilm forming bacterium Pseudomonas aeruginosa remain a major safety issue. Therefore, novel strategies and compounds to reduce the onset of CL-associated ocular infections are needed. Recently, the activity of the frog skin-derived antimicrobial peptide Esc(1-21) and its diastereomer Esc(1-21)-1c was evaluated against both planktonic and sessile forms of this pathogen. Furthermore, Esc(1-21) was found to significantly reduce the severity of P. aeruginosa keratitis in a mouse model and preserve antipseudomonal activity in the presence of human basal tears. Here, we have analyzed the activity of the peptides on P. aeruginosa biofilm formed on soft CLs. Microbiological assays and scanning electron microscopy analysis indicated that the peptides were able to disrupt the bacterial biofilm, with the diastereomer having the greater efficacy (up to 85% killing vs no killing at 4 μM for some strains). Furthermore, upon covalent immobilization to the CL, the two peptides were found to cause more than four log reduction in the number of bacterial cells within 20 minutes and to reduce bacterial adhesion to the CL surface (77%–97% reduction) in 24 hours. Importantly, peptide immobilization was not toxic to mammalian cells and did not affect the lens characteristics. Overall, our data suggest that both peptides have great potential to be developed as novel pharmaceuticals for prevention and treatment of CL-associated P. aeruginosa keratitis.

Item Type:	Article
Uncontrolled Keywords:	antimicrobial peptides, contact len, keratitis, Pseudomonas aeruginosa
Subjects:	B500 Ophthalmics C500 Microbiology
Department:	Faculties > Health and Life Sciences > Applied Sciences
Depositing User:	Ay Okpokam
Date Deposited:	23 Jan 2018 16:50
Last Modified:	11 Oct 2019 14:17
URI:	http://nrl.northumbria.ac.uk/id/eprint/33167

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