The protective effect of fish-derived cathelicidins on bacterial infections in zebrafish, Danio rerio

Publication date: Available online 13 June 2019Source: Fish & Shellfish ImmunologyAuthor(s): Chen Chen, Aili Wang, Fen Zhang, Minghui Zhang, Huaixin Yang, Jianan Li, Pengchao Su, Yan Chen, Haining Yu, Yipeng WangAbstractAntibiotic-resistant bacteria are severe threats to aquaculture industry. Boosting and modulating host immune responses has been proved to be an effective strategy to combat with bacterial infections and there is an urgent need for novel immunomodulators. Cathelicidins is an important family of host defense peptides (HDPs) that possess direct antimicrobial activities and potent immunomodulatory properties. Several cathelicidins have been identified and characterized from diverse fish species. Considering the relatively conserved immune systems between different fish species, it is reasonable to speculate that cathelicidins from different fish species possess immunomodulating functions on the other fish species. In the present study, two fish-derived cathelicidins (CATH_BRALE and codCath1) were selected to investigate their protective effect on zebrafish with bacterial infections. They exhibited potent and broad-spectrum antimicrobial activities against the tested aquatic Gram-positive and Gram-negative pathogenic bacteria, with MIC values ranging 2.34–18.75 μg/ml for CATH_BRALE and 2.34–37.5 μg/ml for codCath1. And their antimicrobial effect is so rapid that they killed the bacteria within 60 min. Unlike conventional antibiotics, they kill bacteria...
Source: Fish and Shellfish Immunology - Category: Biology Source Type: research