Bacteriocin-nanoconjugates as emerging compounds for enhancing antimicrobial activity of bacteriocins

Food spoilage which makes food unsuitable for human consumption is one of the major concerns in the food industry. Although various chemical additives are being used commercially for food preservation to prevent spoilage, but these chemically synthesized preservatives cause severe ill-effects on human health. The increasing awareness of health hazards caused due to them among the consumers has led to a demand for availability of chemical-free food in the market. This in turn has created the need to look for new alternatives, which are natural but efficient and do not pose any health issues. In this context, naturally occurring, non-pathogenic lactic acid bacteria, or bacteriocins produced by them have attracted a lot of attention in the scientific community. Bacteriocins are ribosomally synthesized active proteins which show bactericidal mode of action against food spoiling bacteria and are considered to be safe additives for food preservation. However, several hurdles such as sensitivity to proteolytic enzymes, restricted antimicrobial spectrum, high dosage requirement and low yield limit the use of bacteriocins as efficient food preservatives. To combat some of these limitations, more recently bacteriocin-nanoconjugates have emerged as a promising solution. This review focuses on the limitations of bacteriocins in restricting the growth of food-borne pathogens and the potential of nanotechnology in enhancing the antimicrobial activity of bacteriocins.