Gone gene fishing: how to catch novel marine antimicrobials

Medical or health-promoting products of marine origin are often regarded with skepticism – some, such as shark fins and cod liver oil, are frequently perceived as low-tech ‘alternative treatments’ largely because they have not been exploited to their full potential. The marine environment is an enormous source of biodiversity – 80% of all life is found under the oceans’ surfaces – yet very little of this rich resource has been utilized. Furthermore, most marine organisms rely heavily on antimicrobial components of their innate immune defenses to combat pathogens. The past three years has seen a revolution in the methods used to identify novel antimicrobials from marine sources; among the most promising are marine cationic antimicrobial peptides (CAPs).