Isolation and characterization of secondary metabolites with potential for antibacterial action

• Grant number: 21/01309-1
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Post-Doctoral
• Start date: June 01, 2021
• End date: January 31, 2023
• Field of knowledge: Physical Sciences and Mathematics - Chemistry - Organic Chemistry
• Principal Investigator: Andrea Dessen de Souza e Silva
• Grantee: Ariane Fernandes Bertonha Delezuk
• Host Institution: Centro Nacional de Pesquisa em Energia e Materiais (CNPEM). Ministério da Ciência, Tecnologia e Inovação (Brasil). Campinas , SP, Brazil
• Associated research grant: 17/12436-9 - ANTIBIO-BAC: exploring the bacterial cell wall as a target for novel antibiotherapies, AP.SPEC

Abstract

Since Fleming's accidental discovery of penicillin, several other compounds with antibiotic activity have been used and have revolutionized Medicine in the treatment of infectious diseases. Despite the great advance in the development of these drugs, an unexpected factor is growing fast: the resistance of pathogenic microorganisms to antibiotics. Since pathogens inevitably become resistant to antibiotics, the search for new active compounds is continuous. For this reason, the emergence of studies that aim to fill the void in the development of new drugs in recent years is essential. With this in mind, the central objective of this work plan refers to the isolation guided by biological assays and structural characterization of secondary metabolites that demonstrate promising potential as new candidates for antibiotics against resistant strains. Natural products are commonly used as inspiration for the development of drugs and these form the basis of the current arsenal of antibiotics. The evaluation of singular and unexplored libraries of natural products, such as those derived from Brazilian biodiversity, combined with knowledge of development and survival bacterial processes are key parts of this work plan. (AU)