SGER: Inactivation of Bacillus Spores Using Antimicrobial Peptides

细菌孢子是已知的最具抗性的生命形式，其休眠和抗性归因于其纳米级的多室结构和形态。包裹DNA和其他细胞内容物的内细胞膜被近100纳米的聚合物层和蛋白质外壳保护，不受外界环境的影响。像炭疽芽孢杆菌这样的孢子尤其有问题，因为它们被用作生物恐怖主义制剂，而且它们未来被滥用的可能性仍然存在。除了很难灭活外，芽孢杆菌孢子很容易在环境中传播，并且很容易从单一来源污染大面积。虽然孢子不具有感染性，但在适当的刺激下，孢子可以通过多种途径从休眠状态转变为毒性致病状态。发芽是第一步的步骤过程。根据目前对孢子失活的理解，人们认为芽孢必须在孢子被抗孢子剂杀死之前萌发，但有少数例外，如十二烷基胺（DDA），尽管失活的机制尚不清楚。目前，还没有适合所有环境的孢子灭活方法。例如，虽然漂白剂和水通常用于孢子灭活，但它们的有效性因有机物质的存在而大大降低，这意味着该技术在实验室比在野外环境中有效得多。我们首次在初步实验中证明，一种自然产生的抗菌肽可以灭活芽孢杆菌孢子，即使在没有化学生发剂的情况下也能发生这种情况。更广泛的影响这项工作的更广泛的影响是由于社会需要新的孢子灭活方法，以及培养学生和影响到K-12教师的潜力。这项工作具有明显的社会效益，因为目前还没有有效的孢子检测和灭活方法，可以在不同类型的表面和环境相关条件下工作，例如在有机物存在的情况下。

Terri A CamesanoWorcester Polytechnic InstituteSGER: Inactivation of Bacillus Spores Using Antimicrobial PeptidesIntellectual MeritBacterial spores are the most resistant life forms known, whose dormancy and resistance are attributed to their nanoscale multi-compartmental structure and morphology. The inner cell membrane encapsulating the DNA and other cellular contents is protected from the external environment by nearly 100 nm barrier of a polymer layer and protein coat. Spores such as Bacillus anthracis are especially problematic, because they have been used as bioterrorism agents and their potential for future abuse remains. In addition to being very difficult to inactivate, Bacillus spores are easily spread through the environment and can readily contaminate a large area from a single source.Although spores are not infective, with proper stimuli, the spores transform from their dormant state to a virulent pathogenic state via a multi−step process of which germination is the first. According to current understanding of spore inactivation, it is believed that germination must occur before spores can be killed by anti-sporal agents, with a few exceptions such as dodecylamine (DDA), although the mechanism of the deactivation is not understood. Currently, there are no adequate methods for spore inactivation that will work in all environments. For example, while bleach and water are commonly used for spore inactivation, their effectiveness is greatly reduced by the presence of organic materials, meaning that this technique is much more effective in the laboratory than it would be in a field environment. For the first time, we have demonstrated in preliminary experiments that a naturally occurring antimicrobial peptidecan inactivate Bacillus spores, and this occurs even in the absence of a chemical germinant.Broader ImpactsThe broader impacts of this work are due to the societal need for new methods of spore deactivation, as well as, the potential to train students and affect outreach to K-12 teachers. This work has a clear societal benefit since there are currently no effective methods for spore detection and inactivation that will work for different types of surfaces and under environmentally-relevant conditions, such as in the presence of organic matter.