Antimicrobial effect of spider venom on bacteria that can cause human infections

Finding a new antimicrobial agent, that cures some illnesses caused by microorganisms, is important for human health because one of the most public health threats in the world is the antimicrobial resistance of many pathogens to the traditional antibiotics. Indeed, due to rising the microbial resistance ability of microorganisms, there is still an urgent need to discover a novel alternative and the most available alternatives are antimicrobial peptides, which are small weighted and multifunctional molecules, that play major roles in overpowering the infections. Hence, antimicrobial peptides, including venom peptides, have been considered as excellent candidates for designing new therapeutics. However, this study investigated the antimicrobial activity of Araneus quadratus Clerck, 1757 spider venom against seventeen bacterial strains (Bacillus subtilis DSMZ 1971, Enterobacter aerogenes ATCC 13048, Enterococcus durans, Enterococcus faecalis ATCC 29212, Enterococcus faecium, Escherichia coli ATCC 25922, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Listeria innocua, Listeria monocytogenes ATCC 7644, Pseudomonas aeruginosa DSMZ 50071, Pseudomonas fluorescens P1, Salmonella enteritidis ATCC 13075, Salmonella infantis, Salmonella kentucky, Salmonella typhimurium SL1344, Staphylococcus aureus ATCC 25923, and Staphylococcus epidermidis DSMZ 20044) as well as one fungus (Candida albicans DSMZ 1386) using plate growth inhibition assay to determine the minimal inhibitory concentrations. The results of this study revealed that the venom showed different effects according to the year of collection and the concentrations used in each year, but further researches are required to support the success of the use of A. quadratus venom as an antimicrobial agent. Therefore, the present study will be the base for further investigation and purification of the active item that is responsible for the antimicrobial activity of A. quadratus spider venom by performing advanced techniques.