lactoferricin

This report describes proteolytic fragmentation and clearance of bovine lactoferrin (bLF) upon intravaginal administration in premenopausal women. Tablet formulations (MTbLF) containing 300 mg of bLF progressed through three phases: Pre-Dissolution, Dissolution, and Washout, over a 30-h time course. Tablets dissolved slowly, replenishing intact 80 kDa bLF in vaginal fluid (VF) as proteolysis occurred. bLF was initially cleaved approximately in half between its N- and C-lobes, then degraded into sub-fragments and small peptides...

Cryptococcosis is associated with high rates of morbidity and mortality. The limited number of antifungal agents, their toxicity, and the difficulty of these molecules in crossing the blood-brain barrier have made the exploration of new therapeutic candidates against Cryptococcus neoformans a priority task. To optimize the antimicrobial functionality and improve the physicochemical properties of AMPs, chemical strategies include combinations of peptide fragments into one. This study aimed to evaluate the binding of the minimum activity motif of bovine lactoferricin (LfcinB) and buforin II (BFII) against C...

Tuberculosis is a highly contagious disease caused by the Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex (MTBC). Although TB is treatable, multidrug-resistant, extensively drug-resistant, and totally drug-resistant forms of M. tuberculosis have become a new life-threatening concern. New anti-TB drugs that are capable of curing these drug-resistant strains are urgently needed. The purpose of this study is to determine the antimycobacterial activity of D-enantiomer human lactoferricin 1-11 (D-hLF 1-11) against mycobacteria in vitro using a 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-dephenyltetrazolium bromide colorimetric assay, resazurin microplate assay, and microscopic observation drug susceptibility assay...

Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) are considered to be a valuable source for the identification and/or design of promising candidates for the development of antifungal treatments, since they have advantages such as lower tendency to induce resistance, ease of production, and high purity and safety. Bovine lactoferricin (LfcinB) and buforin II (BFII) are AMPs to which great antimicrobial potential has been attributed. The minimum motives with antimicrobial activity derived from LfcinB and BFII are RRWQWR and RLLR, respectively...

This study aimed to investigate the effects of dietary Bovine lactoferricin (LFcinB) on the growth performance and non-specific immunity in Macrobrachium rosenbergii. Five experimental diets were 1.0‰ Bovine lactoferricin (LCB1); 1.5‰ Bovine lactoferricin (LCB1.5); 2.0‰ Bovine lactoferricin (LCB2); 2.5‰ Bovine lactoferricin (LCB2.5); the control group, basal diet without Bovine lactoferricin. A total of 600 prawns were randomly assigned to 5 groups in triplicate in 15 tanks for an 8-week feeding trial...

The emergence of multidrug-resistant bacterial strains with respect to commercially available antimicrobial drugs has marked a watershed in treatment therapies to fight pathogens and has stimulated research on alternative remedies. Proteins of the innate immune system of mammals have been highlighted as potentially yielding possible treatment options for infections. Lactoferrin (Lf) is one of these proteins; interestingly, no resistance to it has been found. Lf is a conserved cationic nonheme glycoprotein that is abundant in milk and is also present in low quantities in mucosal secretions...

In addition to vaccines, there is an urgent need for supplemental antiviral therapeutics to dampen the persistent COVID-19 pandemic caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2). The transmembrane protease serine 2 (TMPRSS2), that is responsible for proteolytic priming of the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein, appears as a rational therapeutic target. Accordingly, selective inhibitors of TMPRSS2 represent potential tools for prevention and treatment of COVID-19. Previously, we identified the human milk glycoprotein lactoferrin as a natural inhibitor of plasminogen conversion to plasmin, a serine protease homologous to TMPRSS2...

We recently reported that lactoferrin (LF) induces Foxp3+ Treg differentiation through binding to TGFβ receptor III (TβRIII), and this activity was further enhanced by TGFβ1. Generally, a low T-cell receptor (TCR) signal strength is favourable for Foxp3+ Treg differentiation. In the present study, we explored the effect of lactoferrin chimera (LFch, containing lactoferricin [aa 17-30] and lactoferrampin [aa 265-284]), along with TGFβ1 on Foxp3+ Treg differentiation. LFch alone did not induce Foxp3 expression, yet LFch dramatically enhanced TGFβ1-induced Foxp3 expression...

Plasmacytoid dendritic cells (pDCs) recognise viral single-stranded RNA (ssRNA) or CpG DNA via Toll-like receptor (TLR)-7 and TLR9, and produce interferon (IFN)-α. Activated pDCs upregulate human leukocyte antigen (HLA)-DR and CD86 expression levels. Ingestion of bovine lactoferrin (LF) activates pDCs, but little is known about its effects. In this study, the effects of LF and its pepsin hydrolysate (LFH) on the production of IFN-α from peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) and pDCs were examined. PBMCs were prepared from peripheral blood of healthy adults and incubated with LF, LFH, or lactoferricin (LFcin) in the absence or presence of ssRNA derived from human immunodeficiency virus...

Candida species are the main fungal opportunistic pathogens causing systemic infections that are often associated with drug resistance and biofilm production on medical devices. The pressing need for new antifungal agents led to an increased interest in the use of combination therapies. The present study was aimed at investigating potential synergistic activity of the human lactoferrin-derived hLF1-11 peptide with caspofungin against caspofungin-resistant or -susceptible C. albicans, C. parapsilosis, and C...

The use of oncolytic peptides with activity against a wide range of cancer entities as a new and promising cancer therapeutic strategy has drawn increasing attention. The oncolytic peptide LTX-315 derived from bovine lactoferricin (LfcinB) was found to be highly effective against suspension cancer cells, but not adherent cancer cells. In this study, we tactically fused LTX-315 with rhodamine B through a hybridization strategy to design and synthesize a series of nucleus-targeting hybrid peptides and evaluated their activity against adherent cancer cells...

We report the real-time response of Escherichia coli to lactoferricin-derived antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) on length scales bridging microscopic cell sizes to nanoscopic lipid packing using millisecond time-resolved synchrotron small-angle X-ray scattering. Coupling a multiscale scattering data analysis to biophysical assays for peptide partitioning revealed that the AMPs rapidly permeabilize the cytosolic membrane within less than 3 s-much faster than previously considered. Final intracellular AMP concentrations of ∼80-100 mM suggest an efficient obstruction of physiologically important processes as the primary cause of bacterial killing...

When bovine lactoferrin (bLF) contacts human vaginal fluid (VF) it is subjected to proteolytic degradation. This report describes fragmentation patterns of bLF dosed vaginally in clinical trials or incubated ex vivo with VF. A consensus pattern of fragments was observed in samples from different women. The 80 kDa bLF molecule is initially cleaved between its homologous 40 kDa domains, the N-lobe and C-lobe, and then degraded into sub-fragments and mixtures of small peptides. We characterized this fragmentation process by polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, western blotting, chromatographic separation, and mass spectral sequence analysis...

OBJECTIVES: Chronic wounds are characterised by prolonged inflammation, low mitogenic activity, high protease/low inhibitor activity, microbiota changes and biofilm formation, combined with the aetiology of the original insult. One strategy to promote healing is to terminate the parasitism-like relationship between the biofilm-growing pathogen and host response. Antimicrobial peptide AMC-109 is a potential treatment with low resistance potential and broad-spectrum coverage with rapid bactericidal effect...

BACKGROUND: Lactoferricin peptide (LP) has been reported to control cancer cell proliferation. NF-κB interacting lncRNA (NKILA) is a tumor suppressor in several cancers. OBJECTIVE: We aimed to explore the potential function of the truncated LP (TLP) in the prevention of cervical cancer cell proliferation. METHODS: Bioinformatics analysis via PPA-Pred2 showed that 18-aa N-terminus of truncated lactoferricin peptide (TLP18, FKCRRWQWRMKKLGAPSI) shows higher affinity with nuclear factor kappaB (NF-κB) than LP...

Mannheimia haemolytica serotype A2 is the main bacterial causative agent of ovine mannheimiosis, a disease that leads to substantial economic losses for livestock farmers. Several virulence factors allow M. haemolytica to colonize the lungs and establish infection. Virulence factors can be directly secreted into the environment by bacteria but are also released through outer membrane vesicles (OMVs). In addition, due to the abuse of antibiotics in the treatment of this disease, multidrug-resistant bacterial strains of M...

Melanomas are aggressive tumors with a high metastatic potential and an increasing incidence rate. They are known for their heterogeneity and propensity to easily develop therapy-resistance. Nowadays they are one of the most common cancers diagnosed during pregnancy. Due to the difficulty in balancing maternal needs and foetal safety, melanoma is challenging to treat. The aim of this study was to provide a potential model system for the study of melanoma in pregnancy and to illustrate melanoma heterogeneity...

Lactoferrin-binding protein B (LbpB) is a lipoprotein present on the surface of Neisseria that has been postulated to serve dual functions during pathogenesis in both iron acquisition from lactoferrin (Lf), and in providing protection against the cationic antimicrobial peptide lactoferricin (Lfcn). While previous studies support a dual role for LbpB, exactly how these ligands interact with LbpB has remained unknown. Here, we present the structures of LbpB from N. meningitidis and N. gonorrhoeae in complex with human holo-Lf, forming a 1:1 complex and confirmed by size-exclusion chromatography small-angle X-ray scattering...

Lactoferrins are an iron-binding glycoprotein that have important protective roles in the mammalian body through their numerous functions, which include antimicrobial, antitumor, anti-inflammatory, immunomodulatory, and antioxidant activities. Among these, their antimicrobial activity has been the most studied, although the mechanism behind antimicrobial activities remains to be elucidated. Thirty years ago, the first lactoferrin-derived peptide was isolated and showed higher antimicrobial activity than the native lactoferrin lactoferricin...

This study aimed to investigate the biological effects of supplementation of bovine lactoferricin (BLFc) at the rate of 100 mg/kg/day (LF-1) or 200 mg/kg/day (LF-2) in lactating dairy goats. Dietary BLFc supplementation increased the concentration of lactoferrin (LF) in the milk and serum ( p < 0.05) without affecting the feed intake. In the LF-1 group, serum Fe, total antioxidant (T-AOC), and immunoglobulin A (IgA) were increased ( p < 0.05), while malondialdehyde (MDA) was decreased ( p < 0.05). In the LF-2 group, ruminal fluid pH value was decreased ( p < 0...