Biomimetic Polymers with Antimicrobial Activity
Abstract
Structural proteinomics is providing rapid insight into the structural and biological functions of many proteins. Our intention was to use this understanding to develop polymers that are more stable and inexpensive to produce than natural proteins, but nevertheless mimic their important biological properties. Toward this goal, we have focused on the host defense peptides, which are a broad class of peptides with remarkable antimicrobial properties against a host of organisms including Gram- negative and Gram-positive bacteria. These peptides have a common physiochemical motif that leads to their biological activity, which is an overall cationic and amphiphilic architecture. We developed polymers that also have an overall cationic and amphiphilic architecture similar to the peptides. Recently, similar work has been reported on beta-amino acids however these materials are still very labor intensive and expensive to produce. Nonetheless, they demonstrate that non-natural polymers can be used to mimic peptide activity. We developed a family of very inexpensive polymers that mimic the structural characteristics of amphiphilic beta-sheet peptides.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Mar 06, 2003
- Accession Number
- ADA414733
Entities
People
- Gregory N Tew
- Lachelle Arnt
Organizations
- University of Massachusetts Amherst