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Mechanisms of Nα-lauroyl arginate ethyl ester against Penicillium digitatum and Pectobacterium carotovorum subsp. carotovorum

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Abstract

The purpose of this study was to investigate the antimicrobial activity and mechanisms of Nα-lauroyl arginate ethyl ester (LAE) against Penicillium digitatum and Pectobacterium carotovorum subsp. carotovorum. The minim inhibitory concentrations of LAE against P. digitatum and P. carotovorum were found to be 400 and 25 μg/ml, respectively. Loss of intracellular protein and nucleic acid increased significantly, and membrane permeability reached 76.28, 54.29 and 85.20%, respectively, when 400 μg/ml of LAE was applied to the hyphae and spores of P. digitatum and to P. carotovorum. Flow cytometry showed that LAE reduced the membrane potential, and the depolarization ratios of P. digitatum and P. carotovorum were 98.19 and 97.25% (P < 0.05), respectively. Transmission electron microscopy photos revealed that LAE caused a rough surface, irregular cellular organelles, protoplast shrinkage, intracytoplasmic coagulation and empty cavities in all three cell types. These results showed that LAE had notable ability to damage the structure of fungal and bacterial cells, making it a possible alternative chemical for use in the preservation of fruits and vegetables.

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported by the Key Projects in the National Science & Technology Pillar Program (2015BAD16B03).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Food Science and Technology, Jiangnan University, 1800 Lihu Avenue, Wuxi, 214122, Jiangsu, People’s Republic of China

    Xiao-Hui Xu & Rong-Rong Lu

  2. Zhejiang Key Laboratory for Agro-Food Processing, College of Biosystems Engineering and Food Science, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310058, People’s Republic of China

    Zeng-Liang Jiang & Feng-Qin Feng

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  1. Xiao-Hui Xu
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  2. Zeng-Liang Jiang
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Correspondence to Rong-Rong Lu.

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Xu, XH., Jiang, ZL., Feng, FQ. et al. Mechanisms of Nα-lauroyl arginate ethyl ester against Penicillium digitatum and Pectobacterium carotovorum subsp. carotovorum. J Food Sci Technol 55, 3675–3682 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13197-018-3296-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s13197-018-3296-6

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