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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Microbiol.
Sec. Antimicrobials, Resistance and Chemotherapy
Volume 15 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/fmicb.2024.1397906

Antibacterial Activity and Mechanism of Stevia Extract Against Antibioticresistant E. coli by Interfering with the Permeability of the Cell Wall and the Membrane

Provisionally accepted
Xu Chen Xu Chen 1Lankun Yi Lankun Yi 1Yubin Bai Yubin Bai 2Weiwei Wang Weiwei Wang 2*Zixuan Shang Zixuan Shang 1*Jiajing Li Jiajing Li 1*Meili Xu Meili Xu 3*Lifei Wu Lifei Wu 3*Jiyu Zhang Jiyu Zhang 2*Mingze Cao Mingze Cao 1*Zhen Zhu Zhen Zhu 1*
  • 1 Hebei University of Engineering, Handan, China
  • 2 Lanzhou Institute of Husbandry and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Lanzhou, Gansu Province, China
  • 3 Chenguang Biotechnology Group Co., Ltd., Handan, Hebei Province, China

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    The present study was designed to compare the antibacterial activity of six chlorogenic acid (CA) isomers extracted from stevia and investigated the underlying antibacterial mechanisms involved. The results indicated that isochlorogenic acid C (ICAC) exhibited the strongest antibacterial activity against the tested bacteria, especially E. coli, at a 2 mg/mL minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) and 8 mg/mL minimum bactericidal concentration (MBC). At the MBC, ICAC inhibited 72.66% of the clinical multidrug-resistant strains. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) revealed that ICAC induced considerable morphological alterations in E. coli ATCC25922 and C4E2. The significant increase in the activity of extracellular alkaline phosphatase (AKP) indicated that ICAC damages the permeability of the bacterial cell wall. Additionally, the intracellular membrane (IM) permeability and the content of lipopolysaccharide (LPS), a main component of the outer membrane (OM), were determined. The significant decrease in LPS content and increased leakage of intracellular proteins and K + from E. coli indicated that ICAC could induce the exfoliation of OM and disrupt IM permeability, resulting in the loss of barrier function. The uptake of propidium iodide (PI), a compromised cell membrane nucleic acid stain, and confocal laser scanning microscopy (CLSM) further demonstrated that ICAC disrupted IM integrity. Moreover, the bactericidal effect and damage to bacterial microstructural function occurred in a dose-dependent manner. These data demonstrate that ICAC has excellent antibacterial activity and is a promising approach for overcoming the antibiotic resistance of pathogenic bacteria.

    Keywords: icaC, E. coli, antibacterial activity and mechanisms, Cell Wall, membrane

    Received: 08 Mar 2024; Accepted: 12 Aug 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Chen, Yi, Bai, Wang, Shang, Li, Xu, Wu, Zhang, Cao and Zhu. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence:
    Weiwei Wang, Lanzhou Institute of Husbandry and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Lanzhou, 730050, Gansu Province, China
    Zixuan Shang, Hebei University of Engineering, Handan, China
    Jiajing Li, Hebei University of Engineering, Handan, China
    Meili Xu, Chenguang Biotechnology Group Co., Ltd., Handan, Hebei Province, China
    Lifei Wu, Chenguang Biotechnology Group Co., Ltd., Handan, Hebei Province, China
    Jiyu Zhang, Lanzhou Institute of Husbandry and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Lanzhou, 730050, Gansu Province, China
    Mingze Cao, Hebei University of Engineering, Handan, China
    Zhen Zhu, Hebei University of Engineering, Handan, China

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