TY - JOUR
T1 - Biological activity of glycolipids produced by microorganisms
T2 - New trends and possible therapeutic alternatives
AU - Cortés-Sánchez, Alejandro de Jesús
AU - Hernández-Sánchez, Humberto
AU - Jaramillo-Flores, María Eugenia
PY - 2013/1/15
Y1 - 2013/1/15
N2 - Several biological processes in prokaryotic and eukaryotic organisms require the presence of glycolipids (biosurfactants), compounds with both hydrophilic and hydrophobic groups in their structure. They constitute the backbone of different metabolic functions and biological structures such as cell membranes. Besides being structural components, glycolipids show surface activity in the interfaces and are mainly produced by microorganisms. Interest in biosurfactants has increased considerably in recent times due to their applications in the environmental, oil, food, and pharmaceutical industries, since they have unique properties such as low toxicity, high biodegradability, environmentally friendly, foaming capacity, high selectivity and specificity at extreme temperatures, pH and salinity, as well as biological activity. All of these properties are considered advantages over other chemical surfactants, and therefore glycolipids are considered a good alternative, given the current interest on sustainable development. The present work shows a general view of bio-surfactants of microbial origin, particularly of glycolipids, referring to several studies on their biological activity that have revealed their great potential in the medical-biological field, discovering interesting possibilities for their therapeutic application in the near future.
AB - Several biological processes in prokaryotic and eukaryotic organisms require the presence of glycolipids (biosurfactants), compounds with both hydrophilic and hydrophobic groups in their structure. They constitute the backbone of different metabolic functions and biological structures such as cell membranes. Besides being structural components, glycolipids show surface activity in the interfaces and are mainly produced by microorganisms. Interest in biosurfactants has increased considerably in recent times due to their applications in the environmental, oil, food, and pharmaceutical industries, since they have unique properties such as low toxicity, high biodegradability, environmentally friendly, foaming capacity, high selectivity and specificity at extreme temperatures, pH and salinity, as well as biological activity. All of these properties are considered advantages over other chemical surfactants, and therefore glycolipids are considered a good alternative, given the current interest on sustainable development. The present work shows a general view of bio-surfactants of microbial origin, particularly of glycolipids, referring to several studies on their biological activity that have revealed their great potential in the medical-biological field, discovering interesting possibilities for their therapeutic application in the near future.
KW - Antimicrobials
KW - Biological activity
KW - Biosurfactants
KW - Glycolipids
KW - Metabolite
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84869871648&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.micres.2012.07.002
DO - 10.1016/j.micres.2012.07.002
M3 - Artículo de revisión
SN - 0944-5013
VL - 168
SP - 22
EP - 32
JO - Microbiological Research
JF - Microbiological Research
IS - 1
ER -