Journal
FRONTIERS IN MICROBIOLOGY
Volume 7, Issue -, Pages -Publisher
FRONTIERS MEDIA SA
DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2016.00486
Keywords
Legionella pneumophila; biofilms; amoebae; biocides; natural compounds; antimicrobial peptides; essential oils; biosurfactants
Categories
Funding
- French National Research Program for Environmental and Occupational Health of ANSES [EST-2015/1/111]
Ask authors/readers for more resources
Legionella pneumophila, the major causative agent of Legionnaires' disease, is found in freshwater environments in close association with free-living amoebae and multispecies biofilms, leading to persistence, spread, biocide resistance, and elevated virulence of the bacterium. Indeed, legionellosis outbreaks are mainly due to the ability of this bacterium to colonize and persist in water facilities, despite harsh physical and chemical treatments. However, these treatments are not totally efficient and, after a lag period, L. pneumophila may be able to quickly re-colonize these systems. Several natural compounds (biosurfactants, antimicrobial peptides...) with anti-Legionella properties have recently been described in the literature, highlighting their specific activities against this pathogen. In this review, we first consider this hallmark of Legionella to resist killing, in regard to its biofilm or host-associated life style. Then, we focus more accurately on natural anti-Legionella molecules described so far, which could provide new eco-friendly and alternative ways to struggle against this important pathogen in plumbing.
Authors
I am an author on this paper
Click your name to claim this paper and add it to your profile.
Reviews
Recommended
No Data Available