Patent ID: 7541139

Claim:
A method of producing a protein with an increased antimicrobial activity or polypeptide stability, comprising: replacing an arginine residue in a polypeptide of interest with a tryptophan residue or a phenylalanine residue to produce a tryptophan-substituted or phenylalanine-substituted polypeptide; and comparing the antimicrobial activity or polypeptide stability of the polypeptide of interest with the tryptophan-substituted or phenylalanine-substituted polypeptide, wherein the tryptophan-substituted or phenylalanine-substituted polypeptide has increased antimicrobial activity or polypeptide stability compared to the polypeptide of interest, and wherein the tryptophan-substituted or phenylalanine-substituted polypeptide has similar antimicrobial activity or increased polypeptide stability compared to the polypeptide of interest wherein the arginine residue is ADP-ribosylated, thereby producing the protein with increased antimicrobial activity or polypeptide stability.