Mechanisms of Action, Biological Characteristics, and Future Prospects: A Review of Antimicrobial Peptides (A Review)

Abstract Drug-resistant microbes are evolving as a result of the overuse of antibiotics in recent years leading to an increase in the prevalence of drug-resistant infections. Thus, the antibiotics that are currently in development are far from sufficient to treat illnesses and their problems brought on by multi-drug resistance. Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs), which are widely found in the biological world, may help solve this problem. AMPs are highly effective at inhibiting the growth of drug-resistant bacteria via a variety of complex action mechanisms and also have high target specificity. Conjugation to molecules such as antibiotics, proteins, polymers, and nanoparticles are strategies under investigation to boost the therapeutic efficacy of AMPs. As such, they are widely expected to be the basis of a new way of fighting infection in place of antibiotics. This review primarily focuses on these action mechanisms and highlights the biological characteristics and promising applications of AMPs. It also evaluates their prospects and difficulties moving forward. In addition, the antimicrobial efficacies of the design and application of AMPs’ conjugates are summarized to provide a useful reference for future research on AMPs and their application.