Quorum Quenching in Anti-virulence Therapy

Abstract

The quest for new anti-virulence medications has been sparked by the rising antibiotic resistance rates of pathogenic bacteria. By interfering with vital components of bacteria, such as their cell walls, nucleic acids and protein biosynthesis, conventional antibiotics kill or restrict bacterial growth. This predictable selection force may lead to the rise of antibiotic-resistant microbial pathogens. Antibiotic treatment of microbial illnesses frequently results in a hostile environment in which bacteria evolve survival strategies, such as biofilm growth, which tends to result in multidrug resistance. These microorganisms typically interact with one another through a procedure known as quorum sensing (QS). By manipulating the expression of genes, particularly those determining virulence, depending on the density of bacterial cells, QS allows bacteria to interact with one another and governs the pathogenesis of many species. The pathogenic world uses the QS signalling system to determine population density and coordinate virulence gene development. Quorum quenching (QQ) was thus proposed for disease treatment and prevention by interacting with the bacterial QS system. Using QQ, it may be possible to create next-generation antibiotics that are particularly effective at preventing QS-mediated pathogenic infections by disrupting bacterial communication. This chapter gives a summary of the fundamental ideas and mechanisms of QS and discusses the application of QQ as a possible tactic in the fight against the threat of microbe pathogenicity and antibiotic resistance.