Ocean Organisms as a Source of Antimicrobial Peptides to Fight Drug-Resistant Infections

Marine-derived antimicrobial peptides (AMPs), sourced from invertebrates, extremophiles, and cyanobacteria, exhibit broad-spectrum activity against drug-resistant pathogens through membrane disruption and immunomodulation. These cationic, amphipathic molecules show low resistance propensity and multifunctional bioactivity spanning antimicrobial, antioxidant, and anticancer properties. Advances in machine learning, genomic/metagenomic tools, and synthetic biology are revolutionizing AMP discovery and optimization. Biotechnological innovations in heterologous expression and marine biomass valorization support scalable production aligned with circular economy principles.

Comprehensive review covering the discovery, structural features, mechanisms of action, biotechnological production, and applications of marine-derived AMPs. Discusses genomic/metagenomic mining, machine learning-based peptide prediction, synthetic biology approaches, and circular bioeconomy frameworks for sustainable commercialization.

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is projected to cause 10 million deaths annually by 2050. Marine organisms are an underexplored reservoir of antimicrobial peptides that have evolved over billions of years to combat pathogens in one of Earth's most microbially diverse environments. Their unique structural features — shaped by extreme ocean conditions — give them properties that land-derived peptides often lack, making them promising candidates for next-generation anti-infective drugs.

The ocean covers 70% of Earth's surface and harbors enormous biodiversity that remains largely unexplored for therapeutic potential. Marine-derived AMPs represent a convergence of several trends: the urgent need for new antimicrobials, advances in computational biology and AI for drug discovery, and growing interest in sustainable blue economy approaches. As the antimicrobial resistance crisis worsens, the ocean's peptide arsenal could become an increasingly critical resource for global health.

As a review, no new experimental data is presented. The abstract acknowledges critical challenges including production scalability, regulatory frameworks, and the gap between laboratory discovery and commercial application. Many marine AMPs described in the literature have not progressed beyond in vitro characterization.