Bioactive Metabolites Isolated from Microorganisms for Healthcare: Types and Delivery Routes

Abstract

Microbial bioactive compounds are one of the most raw forms of chemical metabolites present in nature. Essentially, these compounds play an important role in establishing inter-kingdom interactions. In the last few decades, researchers have explored many types of microbes for bioactive metabolites having pharmacological properties. Microorganisms are known as the potential source for antioxidants, vitamins, antibiotics and enzymes. The number of microbial metabolites being isolated and screened for the treatment of human diseases has increased manifolds. With the development of high-throughput techniques, the quality and quantity of microbial metabolites being tested has also grown rapidly. There are reports suggesting that microbial metabolites are more reliable in terms of efficacy and potential when compared to its chemical counterparts for curing human diseases. This chapter discusses microbial isolates having antidiabetic, anticancerous, antibacterial, and antifungal properties. Different strains of marine bacteria and fungi have been used to isolate metabolites exhibiting anticancerous properties. Micromonospora marina is one of the extensively studied microbes for isolating anticancerous metabolites. Some microbial metabolites are known for their antifungal properties. In the early 1970s, echinocandin B extracted from Aspergillus nidulans was reported to have antifungal property, thereby opening up avenues for the screening of more such metabolites to cure human diseases. Due to the involvement of advanced automated equipments, it is easier to screen a large number of compounds for their pharmacological examination in in vitro conditions. However, the major challenge happens to be the delivery of these bioactive compounds in in vivo conditions. Indeed, the biological barriers in the body restrict the delivery of drugs in in vivo conditions. Since these bioactive compounds are more labile than the chemically synthesized constituents of drugs, it becomes a challenge for these compounds to reach its target site without getting degraded in the metabolic processes. The chapter discusses the three most patient-friendly delivery routes, i.e., oral, intravenous, and intradermal. Since the major share of drugs consumed is in the form of oral dosage, the chemical compounds have been categorized into four classes under the “biopharmaceutical classification system.”