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The antimicrobial peptides LL-37, KR-20, FK-13 and KR-12 inhibit the growth of a sensitive and a metronidazole-resistant strain of Trichomonas vaginalis

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Abstract

The parasite Trichomonas vaginalis is the aetiologic agent of trichomoniasis, the most common non-viral sexually transmitted disease worldwide. This infection often remains asymptomatic and is related to several health complications. The traditional treatment for trichomoniasis uses drugs of the 5-nitroimidazole family, such as metronidazole; however, scientific reports indicate an increasing number of drug-resistant strains. Antimicrobial peptides could be an alternative or complementary treatment. In this sense, one attractive candidate is the human cathelicidin, being LL-37 its active form. LL-37 possesses microbicidal activity against many microorganisms such as bacteria, Candida albicans, and Entamoeba histolytica. Shorter sequences derived from this peptide, such as KR-20, FK-13 and KR-12, have been shown to possess a higher microbicidal effect than LL-37. In this study, we determined the activity of LL-37 and its derivatives against T. vaginalis, which was unknown. The results showed that the four peptides (LL-37, KR-20, FK-13-NH2 and KR-12) decreased the viability of T. vaginalis on a 5-nitroimidazole-sensitive and a 5-nitroimidazole-resistant strain; however, KR-20 was the most effective peptide, followed by FK-13-NH2. Low concentrations of all peptides showed a better effect when combined with metronidazole in the sensitive and resistant T. vaginalis strains. These results are promising for potential future therapeutic uses.

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Funding

The Consejo Nacional de Ciencia y Tecnología (CONACYT, Project 2019–2000065) and the Universidad de Guanajuato (project 099/2019) provided financial support. The funding sources did not influence the decision to submit the article for publication.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Biology Department, DCNE, Universidad de Guanajuato, Guanajuato, Guanajuato, Mexico

    María G. Ramírez-Ledesma, Mayra C. Rodríguez, Nayeli Alva-Murillo & Eva E. Avila

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  1. María G. Ramírez-Ledesma
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  2. Mayra C. Rodríguez
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  3. Nayeli Alva-Murillo
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  4. Eva E. Avila
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Contributions

María G. Ramírez-Ledesma (ORCID 0000–0002-4164–2531): conceptualization, methodology, formal analysis, investigation, writing—original draft preparation.

Mayra C. Rodriguez: investigation.

Nayeli Alva-Murillo: supervision, resources, and funding acquisition.

Eva E. Avila: conceptualization, supervision, writing—review and editing and resources.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Eva E. Avila.

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The Institutional Bioethics Committee from the Universidad de Guanajuato approved the protocol (CIBIUG-P32-2019).

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Ramírez-Ledesma, M.G., Rodríguez, M.C., Alva-Murillo, N. et al. The antimicrobial peptides LL-37, KR-20, FK-13 and KR-12 inhibit the growth of a sensitive and a metronidazole-resistant strain of Trichomonas vaginalis. Parasitol Res 121, 3503–3512 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00436-022-07674-6

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