Skip to main content

MINI REVIEW article

Front. Nat. Prod.
Sec. Biological Activities of Natural Products
Volume 3 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/fntpr.2024.1456361

Ursolic and oleanolic acids: two natural triterpenoids targeting antibacterial multidrug tolerance and biofilm formation

Provisionally accepted

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    Natural products have been used since ancient times to treat various ailments and have been recognized for many years as a source of therapeutic agents and structural diversity. Plant-derived products have thus served as dietary components but also to maintain a state of well-being and health by preventing different diseases both of inflammatory and infective nature. Pentacyclic triterpenoids, particularly ursolic acid (UA) and oleanolic acid (OA), are well-studied natural products endowed with complex biological profiles. In this mini-review, we summarized the most advanced results on extraction methodologies and antimicrobial activity of UA and OA, focusing on their potential role as antimicrobic adjuvants, bacterial biofilm inhibitors and related mechanisms of action. This offers a theoretical basis and inspiration for further studies on their bioactivity mechanism.

    Keywords: pentacyclic triterpenoids1, Natural products2, bioactive compounds3, antibacterials4, adjuvant strategy5

    Received: 28 Jun 2024; Accepted: 12 Aug 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Spaggiari, Annunziato and Costantino. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence: Chiara Spaggiari, University of Parma, Parma, Italy

    Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.