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Lactobacillus casei combats acid stress by maintaining cell membrane functionality

  • Fermentation, Cell Culture and Bioengineering
  • Published:
Journal of Industrial Microbiology & Biotechnology

Abstract

Lactobacillus casei strains have traditionally been recognized as probiotics and frequently used as adjunct culture in fermented dairy products where lactic acid stress is a frequently encountered environmental condition. We have investigated the effect of lactic acid stress on the cell membrane of L. casei Zhang [wild type (WT)] and its acid-resistant mutant Lbz-2. Both strains were grown under glucose-limiting conditions in chemostats; following challenge by low pH, the cell membrane stress responses were investigated. In response to acid stress, cell membrane fluidity decreased and its fatty acid composition changed to reduce the damage caused by lactic acid. Compared with the WT, the acid-resistant mutant exhibited numerous survival advantages, such as higher membrane fluidity, higher proportions of unsaturated fatty acids, and higher mean chain length. In addition, cell integrity analysis showed that the mutant maintained a more intact cellular structure and lower membrane permeability after environmental acidification. These results indicate that alteration in membrane fluidity, fatty acid distribution, and cell integrity are common mechanisms utilized by L. casei to withstand severe acidification and to reduce the deleterious effect of lactic acid on the cell membrane. This detailed comparison of cell membrane responses between the WT and mutant add to our knowledge of the acid stress adaptation and thus enable new strategies to be developed aimed at improving the industrial performance of this species under acid stress.

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Acknowledgments

This project was financially supported by the Key Program of National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 20836003), the National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 30900013), and the Major State Basic Research Development Program of China (973 Program, No. 2007CB714306).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Key Laboratory of Industrial Biotechnology, Ministry of Education, Jiangnan University, Wuxi, 214122, People’s Republic of China

    Chongde Wu, Juan Zhang, Guocheng Du & Jian Chen

  2. School of Biotechnology, Jiangnan University, 1800 Lihu Road, Wuxi, 214122, People’s Republic of China

    Chongde Wu, Juan Zhang, Guocheng Du & Jian Chen

  3. State Key Laboratory of Food Science and Technology, Jiangnan University, Wuxi, 214122, People’s Republic of China

    Guocheng Du & Jian Chen

  4. School of Food Science and Technology, Jiangnan University, Wuxi, 214122, People’s Republic of China

    Miao Wang

Authors
  1. Chongde Wu
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  2. Juan Zhang
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  3. Miao Wang
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  4. Guocheng Du
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  5. Jian Chen
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Corresponding authors

Correspondence to Guocheng Du or Jian Chen.

Additional information

Chongde Wu and Juan Zhang contributed equally to this work and are co-first authors.

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Wu, C., Zhang, J., Wang, M. et al. Lactobacillus casei combats acid stress by maintaining cell membrane functionality. J Ind Microbiol Biotechnol 39, 1031–1039 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10295-012-1104-2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10295-012-1104-2

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