Transcriptomics reveals substance biosynthesis and transport on membranes of Listeria monocytogenes affected by antimicrobial lipopeptide brevilaterin B

Listeria monocytogenes is a worrisome food-borne pathogen threatening global food safety. Our previous study proved that lipopeptide brevilaterin B showed efficient antibacterial activity against L. monocytogenes by interacting with the cell membrane. This research further explored the antibacterial mechanism of brevilaterin B against L. monocytogenes at the sub-minimum inhibition concentration via transcriptomic analysis. Brevilaterin B induced growth inhibition rather than direct membrane lysis in L. monocytogenes at the minimum inhibitory concentration. Transcriptomic analysis showed 1 779 difference expressed genes, including 895 up-regulated and 884 down-regulated genes. Gene Ontology and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes analysis indicated that brevilaterin B influenced multiple pathways of L. monocytogenes, including peptidoglycan biosynthesis, membrane transport (ATP-binding cassette transports, ion transport), cellular metabolism (amino acid and lipid metabolism), ATP synthesis, and activation of the stress response (quorum sensing and bacterial chemotaxis). In conclusion, brevilaterin B affects gene expression related to biosynthesis, transport and stress response pathways on the membrane of L. monocytogenes. The present work provides the first transcriptomic assessment of the antibacterial mechanism of lipopeptide brevilaterin B at the gene level.(c) 2023 Beijing Academy of Food Sciences. Publishing services by Elsevier B.V. on behalf of KeAi Communications Co., Ltd. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).

Automated summary

This study further explored the antibacterial mechanism of lipopeptide brevilaterin B against L. monocytogenes using transcriptomic analysis. The findings showed that brevilaterin B affects various pathways involved in bacterial growth, membrane transport, cellular metabolism, and stress response.