375results about "Cationic antimicrobial peptides" patented technology

The present invention provides a method of identifying agents that enhance innate immunity in a subject. The invention further provides a method of selectively supressing sepsis by suppressing expression of a proinflammatory gene while maintaining expression of an anti-inflammatory gene. Also provided are methods of identifying a polynucleotide or pattern of polynucleotides regulated by one or more sepsis or inflammatory inducing agents and inhibited by a peptide is described, methods of identifying a pattern of polynucleotide expression for inhibition of an inflammatory or septic response, and compounds and agents identified by the methods of the invention.

One embodiment of the invention comprises a method of producing periodic peptides, which can have antimicrobial uses, and further comprises the peptides themselves. A preferred method comprises the synthesis of simple periodic peptides made from polymerizing identical monomer units of four or fewer amino acids, wherein the minimum length of active peptide is 15 or 16 residues and wherein the minimum percentage of cationic residues is at least 25%.

Coating compositions having a peptidic antimicrobial additive and an antimicrobial additive of another configuration are provided. The concentrations of the antimicrobial agents within the coating composition are sufficient to synergistically inhibit microbial growth on an inanimate surface coated with the surface coating composition or within a container storing the coating composition. Methods for making and using such compositions to inhibit microbial growth in stored coatings and on susceptible surfaces are also provided.

Methods for the treatment and prevention of microbial infection, such as infections caused by bacteria, viruses, fungi and parasites are disclosed, as are adjuvants for use with vaccines against such microbes. The methods use porcine β-defensins, such as porcine β-defensin-1 and are particularly useful for treating or preventing infections caused by gram-negative bacteria, such as pertussis.

Methods and compositions for modulating development and defense responses are provided. Nucleotide sequences encoding defensin proteins are provided. The sequences can be used in expression cassettes for modulating development, developmental pathways, and defense responses. Transformed plants, plant cells, tissues, and seed are also provided.

Combinatorially generated peptides are provided that have binding affinity for Polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE). The peptides may be used to deliver benefit agents to various PTFE surfaces.

Disclosed herein are novel antimicrobial peptides with useful, improved, or superior properties such as antimicrobial activity, desirable levels of hemolytic activity, and therapeutic index against a broad range of microorganisms including gram-negative and gram-positive bacteria and other organisms having a cellular or structural component of a lipid bilayer membrane. Also provided are methods of making and using such peptides to control microbial growth and in pharmaceutical compositions for treatment or prevention of infections caused by such microorganisms. Certain peptides are disclosed utilizing a structure-based rational design relating to an antimicrobial peptide, V681, with single D- / L-amino acid substitutions or charged residue substitutions in or near the center of the peptide on the nonpolar or polar face. Also disclosed are peptides with one or more amino acids in the D configuration, including peptides with all amino acids in the D configuration. Modified peptide analogs herein can demonstrate one or more properties such as improved antimicrobial activity, specificity, and resistance to degradation. Compositions disclosed herein have useful clinical potential as antibiotics including broad spectrum antibiotics.

Antimicrobial peptides and methods of identifying the same are provided.

Methods and compositions for increasing membrane permeability are provided. One aspect provides protein resulting from a fusion between a membrane-active peptide and second peptide. Nucleic acids, and vectors encoding the, pore forming fusion proteins are also provided.

The present application provides methods of producing antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) in a cell, for example by expression a fusion protein that includes small ubiquitin related modifier (SUMO) and an AMP in the cell. Also provided are nucleic acid and protein sequences of SUMO-AMP fusion proteins, and kits that include such molecules.

The present invention relates to polypeptides having antimicrobial activity and polynucleotides having a nucleotide sequence which encodes for the polypeptides. The invention also relates to nucleic acid constructs, vectors, and host cells comprising the nucleic acid constructs as well as methods for producing and using the polypeptides.

A method for designing polypeptides for the nanofabrication of thin films, coatings, and microcapsules by ELBL for applications in biomedicine and other fields.

Compositions and methods are described for non-viral nucleic acid delivery. A targeting peptide capable of mediating targeting to a cell or subcellular compartment is derivatized with a photoaffinity label. Following an ionic interaction with a polynucleotide, such as DNA, and photolysis, the bioactive peptide becomes covalently attached to the DNA. Upon contact with a cell, the peptide facilities uptake of the peptide-polynucleotide conjugate into the cell or subcellular compartment. Methods for using this system for delivery of structural genes, including reporter genes, and detection of expression using bioluminescence are also described.