Small Molecules That Sabotage Bacterial Virulence

Overview

Journal Trends Pharmacol Sci

Specialty Pharmacology

Date 2017 Feb 18

PMID 28209403

Citations 55

Authors

Benjamin K Johnson

Robert B Abramovitch

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

The continued rise of antibiotic-resistant bacterial infections has motivated alternative strategies for target discovery and treatment of infections. Antivirulence therapies function through inhibition of in vivo required virulence factors to disarm the pathogen instead of directly targeting viability or growth. This approach to treating bacteria-mediated diseases may have advantages over traditional antibiotics because it targets factors specific for pathogenesis, potentially reducing selection for resistance and limiting collateral damage to the resident microbiota. This review examines vulnerable molecular mechanisms used by bacteria to cause disease and the antivirulence compounds that sabotage these virulence pathways. By expanding the study of antimicrobial targets beyond those that are essential for growth, antivirulence strategies offer new and innovative opportunities to combat infectious diseases.

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