Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item:
https://hdl.handle.net/10216/103266
Author(s): | M. Simões Anabela Borges M. J. Saavedra |
Title: | Insights on antimicrobial resistance, biofilms and the use of phytochemicals as new antimicrobial agents |
Issue Date: | 2015 |
Abstract: | Antimicrobial resistance is one of the most serious public health problems. This is of particular concern when bacteria become resistant to various antimicrobial agents simultaneously and when they form biofilms. Consequently, therapeutic options for the treatment of infections have become limited, leading frequently to recurrent infections, treatment failure and increase of morbidity and mortality. Both, persistence and spread of antibiotic resistance, in combination with decreased effectiveness and increased toxicity of current antibiotics have emphasized the urgent need to search alternative sources of antimicrobial substances. Plants are recognized as a source of unexplored chemical structures with high therapeutic potential, including antimicrobial activity against clinically important microorganisms. Additionally, phytochemicals (plant secondary metabolites) present several advantages over synthetic molecules, including green status and different mechanisms of action from antibiotics which could help to overcome the resistance problem. In this study, an overview of the main classes of phytochemicals with antimicrobial properties and their mode of action is presented. A revision about the application of phytochemicals for biofilm prevention and control is also done. Moreover, the use of phytochemicals as scaffolds of new functional molecules to expand the antibiotics pipeline is reviewed. Â(c) 2015 Bentham Science Publishers. |
Subject: | Ciências da Saúde, Ciências médicas e da saúde Health sciences, Medical and Health sciences |
Scientific areas: | Ciências médicas e da saúde Medical and Health sciences |
URI: | https://hdl.handle.net/10216/103266 |
Related Information: | info:eu-repo/grantAgreement/Autoridade de Gestão do Programa Operacional Regional do Norte/Programas Integrados de IC&DT/NORTE-07-0124-FEDER-000025/(Bio) Chemical Engineering: Multi-Scale Approaches for Sustainable Environment and Health/LEPAE/CEFT - RL2 info:eu-repo/grantAgreement/FCT - Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia/Projetos Estratégicos/UID/EQU/00511/2013 - POCI-01-0145-FEDER-006939/Laboratório de Engenharia de Processos, Ambiente, Biotecnologia e Energia/LEPABE info:eu-repo/grantAgreement/FCT - Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia/Projectos de I&DT em Todos os Domínios Científicos/PTDC/DTP-SAP/1078/2012|FCOMP-01-0124-FEDER-028765/Desinfeção de bactérias planctónicas e biofilmes em ambientes hospitalares com produtos fitoquímicos/Fitodesinfetantes |
Document Type: | Artigo em Revista Científica Internacional |
Rights: | restrictedAccess |
Appears in Collections: | FEUP - Artigo em Revista Científica Internacional |
Files in This Item:
File | Description | Size | Format | |
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160202.pdf Restricted Access | Artigo original publicado | 535.76 kB | Adobe PDF | Request a copy from the Author(s) |
160202.1.pdf | Post-Print version | 2.41 MB | Adobe PDF | View/Open |
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