Antibiotics: A "GOLDen" promise?

Bacterial infections pose a significant threat to public health and the global economy. The misuse of antibiotics in the treatment of bacterial infections has led to a rapid development of antibiotic-resistant bacteria which demands the development of new antibiotics for effective therapy. Gold complexes manifest prominent antibacterial activities against a broad panel of bacterial strains, indicating their great potential for development as potent antibiotics. The present review article provides an overview of the antibacterial activity of gold complexes since the year 2000, with an emphasis on the past decade, and with separate sections dedicated to the discussion of gold(I) and gold(III) complexes. Further, a summary is provided on the repurposing of Auranofin for antibacterial purposes, along with a summary of the reported associated mechanism(s) of action. This overview is provided to offer insight into the rational design of gold complexes with bio-efficacy.