Review Paper:
Bacteriocins:
Promising Natural Antimicrobials
Shakya Poonam, Nayak Anju, Rai Ajay, Singh R.P. and Garg Akshay
Res. J. Biotech.; Vol. 20(7); 222-236;
doi: https://doi.org/10.25303/207rjbt2220236; (2025)
Abstract
Bacteriocins are multifunctional, ribosomally produced proteinaceous substances
with pronounced antimicrobial activities at certain concentrations25. They are proteinaceous
toxins produced by bacteria and certain members of archaea to inhibit the growth
of similar or closely related bacterial strains15. These molecules have antimicrobial
activity against pathogenic and deteriorating bacteria, justifying their biotechnological
potential. If the bacteriocins produced by a bacterium inhibit other bacteria belonging
to the same species, they are generally considered to be narrow spectrum bacteriocins.
In contrast, if they inhibit bacteria belonging to another genus, they are considered
as broad spectrum bacteriocins.
Bacteriocins produced by Lactic Acid Bacteria (LAB) are of particular importance,
because these bacteria received Generally Recognized as Safe (GRAS) status by the
American Food and Drug Administration (FDA)122. Thus, nisin produced by Lactococcus
lactis was the first bacteriocin to gain widespread commercial application. Since
then, a large number of bacteriocins from a diverse group of bacterial strains have
been identified. Bacteriocins have many positive properties that have made them
particularly interesting for various applications. LAB bacteriocins are inherently
tolerant of high thermal stress and are known for their activities over a wide pH
range. These antimicrobial peptides are also colorless, odorless and tasteless,
which further improve their potential usability. They are also easily degraded by
proteolytic enzymes due to their proteinaceous nature. Consequently, bacteriocin
fragments do not live long in the human body or in the environment, which minimizes
the chance of target strains interacting with degraded antibiotic fragments.
