Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) are small molecules produced by viruses, prokaryotic, and eukaryotic microorganisms, playing a crucial role in the innate defense against infectious pathogens and fungi. Numerous AMPs are gaining attention as a new strategy for cancer treatment due to their immunomodulatory properties and selective targeting of neoplastic cells at minimal toxicity to normal tissues.

More recently, experimental evidence suggests that antigens derived from microorganisms (MoAs) may represent potential targets for developing cancer vaccines to prevent cancers presenting highly homologous tumor-associated antigens (TAAs), e.g., molecular mimicry.

The first generation of AMPs was derived from natural sources; subsequently, AMPs were designed and synthesized to overcome some serious drawbacks such as instability, solubility, pharmacokinetics and short half-life in vivo. Nowadays, the integration of advanced nanosystems and nanocoatings for optimal delivery of AMPs represents a promising approach to overcome the limitations of biodegradability and to achieve precise targeting of anti-cancer molecules.

This Research Topic aims to provide an overview of the latest advances in the field of AMPs, including the discovery of new AMPs, computational tools for optimizing peptides that target cancer cells, chemical synthesis to improve their functionality, preclinical studies to evaluate their efficacy, as well as clinical applications in the setting of cancer diagnostics and therapeutics.

We welcome all article types on themes including, but not limited to:
• AMPs with anticancer activity from diverse sources
• Methods of production of anti-cancer AMPs
• Discovery of new anticancer AMPs
• Characterization of AMP biological activity in vitro and/or in vivo
• Analysis of stability and bioavailability of AMPs
• In silico design and experimental characterization of modified AMPs

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Anti-Cancer Potential of Antimicrobial Peptides