Exploiting a novel chelant database to probe cellular metal-handling.

该项目包括与“生物科学和生物技术”以及“前沿医疗和医药”相关的产业战略的方方面面。宝洁在个人卫生和清洁产品中使用螯合剂作为抗菌剂，它们在这方面占据了相当大的市场份额。具体挑战来自：a)由于持久性螯合剂对环境的影响而引起的监管变化，b)更严格地限制防腐剂的使用，以避免抗菌剂耐药性，以及c)在满足配方强制变化的同时，需要保持抗菌剂的效力。这个项目将从机理上理解螯合剂的抗菌作用，以增强消费产品的微生物敌意。该方法将能够减少防腐剂和螯合剂的水平，同时开发符合安全法规的产品，从而支持抗菌剂的新替代品的使用。与宝洁公司合作，我们已经积累了一个广泛的数据库，研究了螯合剂对细菌元素组成和细菌增殖的影响。我们将进一步了解螯合剂的抗菌作用机制，并相互开发这些化合物，以进一步了解细菌细胞如何处理金属。铜绿假单胞菌已被选为现有制剂中存在根除问题的目标生物。这项工作在对抗抗菌素耐药性(AMR)的威胁方面也具有更广泛的效用，特别是在针对伤口感染方面。

This project encompasses aspects of the Industrial Strategy related to 'Bioscience and Biotechnology' and 'Leading-edge Healthcare and Medicine'. P&G use chelants as antibacterials in personal hygiene and cleaning products, for which they hold substantive market shares. Specific challenges arise from: a) regulatory changes due to the environmental impact of persistent chelants, b) tighter restrictions on use of preservatives to avoid antimicrobial resistance, and c) the need to retain antimicrobial efficacy while meeting enforced changes in formulation. This project will develop a mechanistic understanding of the antimicrobial action of chelants to enhance microbial hostility of consumer products. The approach will enable a reduction in preservative and chelant levels whilst developing products compliant with Safety Regulations thus underpinning the use of novel alternatives to antimicrobials. In collaboration with P&G we have amassed an extensive database of effects of chelants on bacterial elemental composition and on bacterial proliferation. We will further our understanding of the antimicrobial mechanisms of action of chelants and reciprocally exploit these compounds to further knowledge of how bacterial cells handle metals. Pseudomonas aeruginosa has been selected as a target organism that presents eradication problems in existing formulations. The work is also of broader utility in combatting the threat of antimicrobial resistance (AMR), particularly in targeting woundinfections.