Antarctic organisms as a source of antimicrobial compounds: a patent review

• Published in: Anais da Academia Brasileira de Ciências
• Main Authors: MAURÍCIO B. SILVA, ALEXYA O. FEITOSA, IGOR G.O. LIMA, JAMES R.S. BISPO, ANA CAROLINE M. SANTOS, MAGNA S.A. MOREIRA, PAULO E.A.S. CÂMARA, LUIZ HENRIQUE ROSA, VALÉRIA M. OLIVEIRA, ALYSSON W.F. DUARTE, ALINE C. QUEIROZ
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Academia Brasileira de Ciências 2021
• Subjects: Antarctica; antimicrobial activity; antimicrobial resistance; natural antimicrobials; secondary metabolites; Science; Q; Antarctic; Antarc*
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.1590/0001-3765202220210840; https://doaj.org/article/7a0231b6d4f84926ba2575489857c302

Abstract Currently, antimicrobial resistance has become a global public health problem, which has made the need for new antimicrobial compounds to deal with resistant infections an emergency. However, environments that once offered so many innovative molecules, now already exhaustively exploited, do not meet this need. In this context, a geographically isolated, under-explored and extreme environment, such as Antarctica, which holds organisms with unique physiological and biochemical characteristics, assumes great importance as a potential source of new compounds with antimicrobial activity. In this patent review, we investigate the state of technological development in the field of antimicrobial compounds obtained from Antarctic organisms, highlighting the main countries and researchers active in the field, the species utilized, the compounds obtained, and their possible therapeutic applications. As results, few patent documents were found, however they encompass a wide diversity of compounds and species, indicating a great antimicrobial potential present in Antarctic biota, including compounds active against the most important human pathogenic microorganisms, such as including methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus spp. and multi-resistant Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Furthermore, due to the increasing trend in patent applications, a significant rise in the number of patents in this area is expected in the coming years.