Small Molecule Antimicrobial Peptide Mimics as Antimalarials

Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) are essential components of the innate immune system that provides resistance to a variety of pathogenic organisms by selectively lysing, or bursting, cellular membranes of invading pathogens. Doron Greenbaum of the University of Pennsylvania in the U.S. will test whether small molecules that mimic the natural AMPs can selectively kill the parasite that causes malaria. Such an approach could reduce costs of production as well as limit the emergence of drug resistance.