Comprehensive insights into microbial-derived antimicrobial peptides (AMPs): classification, mechanisms, applications, and purification strategies.

Abstract

Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) play a crucial defensive role in living organisms, capable of rapidly responding to and eliminating invading microorganisms. Their mechanisms of action are diverse, primarily involving the disruption of microbial cell membranes. The interest in AMPs stems from their potential to address antibiotic resistance and improve human health. AMPs exhibit: broad-spectrum antimicrobial activity, low toxicity, thermal stability, and high specificity, making them promising candidates for new antimicrobial drugs with applications in medicine, food preservation, and agriculture. This review provides a comprehensive summary of the historical development and classification of AMPs. It details their: classification, mechanisms of action, application fields, and processes involved in the isolation, purification, and structural identification of microbial-derived AMPs. Additionally, it introduces a novel green extraction method using deep eutectic solvents (DESs) for peptide extraction.