ABSTRACT
Acknowledgments ............................................................................................ 528
References ........................................................................................................ 528
Peptide entry into microorganisms is surprising because microorganisms possess
multilayered protective cell barriers. Nevertheless, many natural host defense
antimicrobial peptides kill pathogens by causing cell leakage and inhibition of
intracellular targets. Interestingly, cell-penetrating peptides (CPPs) discovered in
mammalian cell studies are structurally similar to antimicrobial peptides and show
similar microbial cell entry and antimicrobial effects. Therefore, there are
opportunities to use CPPs as antimicrobials with improved host cell distribution
properties. Also, CPPs provide a unique opportunity to deliver a range of foreign
substances into cells.
