Enzymes in the Content of Combined Antimicrobials as Improvers of Their Action

Abstract

Accumulating information about the growing number of microorganisms that are resistant to the antibiotics used, on the one hand, and the emergence of information about the presence of laboratories in which closed work is carried out with microbial pathogens, the negative properties of which can be artificially enhanced.The aim of the work to analyze current trends in the development of antimicrobial drugs combining the use of wellknown and widely used antibiotics, as well as substances with antimicrobial properties, including metal nanoparticles, antimicrobial peptides, with various enzymes that allow to preserve and enhance the antimicrobial effect against the cells of various microorganismsThe source base of the research is mainly English–language scientific literature available via the global Internet network, as well as the authors’ own published experimental studies.The research method is analytical.Results. The work considers enzymes that, unlike classical antimicrobial agents, which more often enter into reactions inhibiting key biochemical reactions, are catalysts for processes aimed at oxidation and hydrolysis of molecules that are metabolically and structurally important for microorganisms.Conclusion. The enzyme repeatedly enters into reactions that significantly reduce the concentrations of substances important for the vital activity of microbial cells, which leads to their weakening and more effective action of antimicrobial agents. Most often, in this case, the enzymes themselves act as carriers for molecules with antimicrobial action, which avoids their non-specific interaction with other, primarily proteins, thus removing some, for example, antibiotics, from the active effect on pathogen cells. It has been demonstrated that the enzymatic enhancement of the bactericidal action of antimicrobial agents can be in relation to different cells, including the complex biosystems (biofilms) formed by them, both by several times and by several orders of magnitude. Such antimicrobial agents combined with enzymes may be of interest for carrying out sanitary treatments of various surfaces, containers, premises, including biological laboratories, for the introduction of protective and dressing materials.

Keywords

• antimicrobial peptides
• bacterial and fungal pathogens
• biofilms
• decontamination
• hydrolases
• oxidases
• protective materials
• wound infections