Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2017 Jan 18:8:2.
doi: 10.3389/fmicb.2017.00002. eCollection 2017.

The Antifungal Activity of Lactoferrin and Its Derived Peptides: Mechanisms of Action and Synergy with Drugs against Fungal Pathogens

Kenya E Fernandes  1 , Dee A Carter  1
Affiliations
Review

The Antifungal Activity of Lactoferrin and Its Derived Peptides: Mechanisms of Action and Synergy with Drugs against Fungal Pathogens

Kenya E Fernandes et al. Front Microbiol. .

Abstract

Lactoferrin is a multifunctional iron-binding glycoprotein belonging to the transferrin family. It is found abundantly in milk and is present as a major protein in human exocrine secretions where it plays a role in the innate immune response. Various antifungal functions of lactoferrin have been reported including a wide spectrum of activity across yeasts and molds and synergy with other antifungal drugs in combination therapy, and various modes of action have been proposed. Bioactive peptides derived from lactoferrin can also exhibit strong antifungal activity, with some surpassing the potency of the whole protein. This paper reviews current knowledge of the spectrum of activity, proposed mechanisms of action, and capacity for synergy of lactoferrin and its peptides, including the three most studied derivatives: lactoferricin, lactoferrampin, and Lf(1-11), as well as some lactoferrin-derived variants and modified peptides.

Keywords: Lf(1–11); antimicrobial peptides; fungi; lactoferrampin; lactoferricin; lactoferrin; natural products; synergy.

PubMed Disclaimer

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

See all "Cited by" articles

References

    1. Acosta-Zaldivar M., Andres M. T., Rego A., Pereira C. S., Fierro J. F., Corte-Real M. (2016). Human lactoferrin triggers a mitochondrial- and caspase-dependent regulated cell death in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Apoptosis 21, 163–173. 10.1007/s10495-015-1199-9 - DOI - PubMed
    1. Actor J. K., Hwang S. A., Kruzel M. L. (2009). Lactoferrin as a natural immune modulator. Curr. Pharm. Des. 15, 1956–1973. 10.2174/138161209788453202 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Adão R., Nazmi K., Bolscher J. G., Bastos M. (2011). C- and N-truncated antimicrobial peptides from LFampin 265-284: biophysical versus microbiology results. J. Pharm. Bioallied Sci. 3, 60–69. 10.4103/0975-7406.76467 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Alexander D. B., Iigo M., Yamauchi K., Suzui M., Tsuda H. (2012). Lactoferrin: an alternative view of its role in human biological fluids. Biochem. Cell Biol. 90, 279–306. 10.1139/o2012-013 - DOI - PubMed
    1. Al-Sheikh H. (2009). Effect of lactoferrin and iron on the growth of human pathogenic Candida species. Pak. J. Biol. Sci. 12, 91–94. 10.3923/pjbs.2009.91.94 - DOI - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources