134
8.3.1 Iron Overload
Iron overload mainly occurs in the children. The usual antidote is desferrioxamines,
a group of siderophores produced from bacterial species such as Streptomyces and
Nocardia. Desferrioxamines are trihydroxamate-type siderophores. In these
bacteria, lysine and ornithine are used as precursors for the biosynthesis of it.
Desferrioxamine B is the major siderophore produced by Streptomyces pilosus
(Gunter et al. 1993), a bacteria. Siderophores have been used for the management of
iron overload conditions such as β-thalassaemia and aluminium overload (Crichton
et al. 2002; Origa et al. 2005). Not much work has been carried out on fungal
siderophores.
8.3.2 Biosensors and Nanosensors
Recently, siderophores have been employed in biosensors and nanosensor platforms
to detect iron and other metal ions in the environment and detection of microorganisms (Nosrati et al. 2018). Some siderophores such as pyoverdines are naturally
fluorescent allowing them to be exploited in the detection of many metals (Palanché
et al. 1999). Not much work has been carried out specifically on fungal
siderophores.
8.3.3 Antimicrobial Activity
Banin et al. have evaluated the desferrioxamine-Ga (non-radioactive) conjugate for
its antimicrobial activity against Pseudomonas aeruginosa. The desferrioxamineGa conjugate showed significant antimicrobial effect by push-pull mechanism
whereby the siderophore released Ga inside the bacterial cell in exchange of iron
and the toxicity of gallium interfered with all metabolic processes (Banin et al. 2008).
Sideromycins are conjugates of an antibiotic and siderophore. Their minimum
inhibitory concentrations are usually 100 times lower than their parent molecule.
The conventional antibiotics are conjugated with suitable siderophore and used. The
microorganism takes up the siderophore in order to get the iron while the antibiotic
also gets delivered inside the cell. This is called as Trojan horse strategy in antimicrobial chemotherapy (Möllmann et al. 2009). This strategy effectively circumvents
the antibiotic resistance developed by the microorganism. There are naturally occurring sideromycins such as albomycins, salmycins and ferrimycins (Górska et al.
2014). The Trojan horse strategy may also utilize gallium ion in a siderophore conjugate to release gallium into the bacterial cell. The gallium may prevent biofilm
formation and interfere with the bacterial metabolism (Juárez-Hernández et al.
2012). The successful application of Trojan horse strategy led to the development of
M. S. A. Shukkoor and S. I. Khalivulla
8.3.1 Iron Overload
Iron overload mainly occurs in the children. The usual antidote is desferrioxamines,
a group of siderophores produced from bacterial species such as Streptomyces and
Nocardia. Desferrioxamines are trihydroxamate-type siderophores. In these
bacteria, lysine and ornithine are used as precursors for the biosynthesis of it.
Desferrioxamine B is the major siderophore produced by Streptomyces pilosus
(Gunter et al. 1993), a bacteria. Siderophores have been used for the management of
iron overload conditions such as β-thalassaemia and aluminium overload (Crichton
et al. 2002; Origa et al. 2005). Not much work has been carried out on fungal
siderophores.
8.3.2 Biosensors and Nanosensors
Recently, siderophores have been employed in biosensors and nanosensor platforms
to detect iron and other metal ions in the environment and detection of microorganisms (Nosrati et al. 2018). Some siderophores such as pyoverdines are naturally
fluorescent allowing them to be exploited in the detection of many metals (Palanché
et al. 1999). Not much work has been carried out specifically on fungal
siderophores.
8.3.3 Antimicrobial Activity
Banin et al. have evaluated the desferrioxamine-Ga (non-radioactive) conjugate for
its antimicrobial activity against Pseudomonas aeruginosa. The desferrioxamineGa conjugate showed significant antimicrobial effect by push-pull mechanism
whereby the siderophore released Ga inside the bacterial cell in exchange of iron
and the toxicity of gallium interfered with all metabolic processes (Banin et al. 2008).
Sideromycins are conjugates of an antibiotic and siderophore. Their minimum
inhibitory concentrations are usually 100 times lower than their parent molecule.
The conventional antibiotics are conjugated with suitable siderophore and used. The
microorganism takes up the siderophore in order to get the iron while the antibiotic
also gets delivered inside the cell. This is called as Trojan horse strategy in antimicrobial chemotherapy (Möllmann et al. 2009). This strategy effectively circumvents
the antibiotic resistance developed by the microorganism. There are naturally occurring sideromycins such as albomycins, salmycins and ferrimycins (Górska et al.
2014). The Trojan horse strategy may also utilize gallium ion in a siderophore conjugate to release gallium into the bacterial cell. The gallium may prevent biofilm
formation and interfere with the bacterial metabolism (Juárez-Hernández et al.
2012). The successful application of Trojan horse strategy led to the development of
M. S. A. Shukkoor and S. I. Khalivulla