College of Resources, Sichuan Agricultural University, 211 Huimin Rd., Chengdu 611130, China.
Institute of Agro-Products Processing Science and Technology, Sichuan Academy of Agricultural Sciences, 60 Shizishan Rd., Chengdu 610066, China.
Toxins (Basel). 2023 Jun 1;15(6):370. doi: 10.3390/toxins15060370.
Phenyllactic acid (PLA), a promising food preservative, is safe and effective against a broad spectrum of food-borne pathogens. However, its mechanisms against toxigenic fungi are still poorly understood. In this study, we applied physicochemical, morphological, metabolomics, and transcriptomics analyses to investigate the activity and mechanism of PLA inhibition of a typical food-contaminating mold, . The results showed that PLA effectively inhibited the growth of spores and reduced aflatoxin B (AFB) production by downregulating key genes associated with AFB biosynthesis. Propidium iodide staining and transmission electron microscopy analysis demonstrated a dose-dependent disruption of the integrity and morphology of the spore cell membrane by PLA. Multi-omics analyses showed that subinhibitory concentrations of PLA induced significant changes in spores at the transcriptional and metabolic levels, as 980 genes and 30 metabolites were differentially expressed. Moreover, KEGG pathway enrichment analysis indicated PLA-induced cell membrane damage, energy-metabolism disruption, and central-dogma abnormality in spores. The results provided new insights into the anti- and -AFB mechanisms of PLA.
苯乳酸（PLA）是一种有前途的食品防腐剂，对广谱食源性病原体安全有效。然而，其针对产毒真菌的机制仍知之甚少。在这项研究中，我们应用物理化学、形态学、代谢组学和转录组学分析来研究 PLA 抑制典型食品污染霉菌的活性和机制。结果表明，PLA 有效抑制了 的孢子生长，并通过下调与 AFB 生物合成相关的关键基因来降低 AFB 产量。碘化丙啶染色和透射电子显微镜分析表明，PLA 以剂量依赖的方式破坏了 的孢子细胞膜的完整性和形态。多组学分析表明，亚抑菌浓度的 PLA 在转录和代谢水平上诱导 孢子发生显著变化，有 980 个基因和 30 种代谢物差异表达。此外，KEGG 途径富集分析表明 PLA 诱导的细胞膜损伤、能量代谢紊乱和中心法则异常在 孢子中发生。这些结果为 PLA 的抗和 -AFB 机制提供了新的见解。
