Bacteriocins: Potential for Human Health

Figure 1

Bacteriocins protect the human body from infection by inhibiting a wide variety of pathogenic microorganisms via different mechanisms. (a) For bacteria, bacteriocins can directly kill pathogenic bacteria by inhibiting the bacteria cell wall biosynthesis by complexing the lipid II and forming the pore in cell membrane, disrupting bacterial population sensing as a signaling molecule, or enters the cell via a transporter and interacts with critical enzymes (e.g., ATP-dependent protease). This eliminates the presence of pathogenic bacteria in the organism and reduces their migration to various extraintestinal organs, i.e., the lung, kidney, and liver. (b) For viruses, bacteriocins can inhibit the proliferation or transfer of viruses by blocking the synthesis of glycoproteins in the late stage of virus replication. (c) For parasites, bacteriocins can inhibit the parasites through mitochondrial membrane depolarization and reactive oxygen species production.