Antibacterial Activity and Possible Mechanism of Essential Oil Against and Its Application in Lettuce.

, the causative agents of bacillary dysentery, remains a significant threat to public health. essential oil (LC-EO), one of the natural essential oils, exhibited promising biological activities. In this study, the antibacterial effects and possible mechanisms of LC-EO on and its application in lettuce medium were investigated. The minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of LC-EO against ATCC 25931 and CMCC 51592 was 4 and 6 μL/mL, respectively. The LC-EO could inhibit the growth of , and decreased to undetectable levels with 4 μL/mL for 1 h in Luria-Bertani broth. The antibacterial mechanism indicated that after the treatment of LC-EO, the production of reactive oxygen species and the activity of superoxide dismutase were significantly elevated in cells, and eventually led to the lipid oxidation product, the malondialdehyde content that significantly increased. Moreover, LC-EO at 2 MIC could destroy 96.51% of bacterial cell membrane integrity, and made cells to appear wrinkled with a rough surface, so that the intracellular adenosine triphosphate leakage was about 0.352-0.030 μmol/L. Finally, the results of application evaluation indicated that the addition of LC-EO at 4 μL/mL in lettuce leaves and 6 μL/mL in lettuce juice could decrease the number of to undetectable levels without remarkable influence on the lettuce leaf sensory quality. In summary, LC-EO exerted strong antibacterial activity and has the potential to control in food industry.