REPTILIAN-DERIVED PEPTIDES FOR THE TREATMENT OF MICROBIAL INFECTION

摘要

The present invention provides compositions useful as antimicrobial agents which include reptilian hemoglobin, the alpha and beta chains of hemoglobin free of heme, fragments of said proteins or polypeptide fragments thereof and combinations thereof. The compositions exert antimicrobial activity against both bacteria and fungi that is comparable to known antimicrobial peptides from human neutrophils, cathepsin G and azurocidin. Sensitive organisms include Gram-negative bacteria such as Escherichia coli and Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and the fungus Candida albicans. Methods for preparing the compositions also are provided.