Physiological and transcriptional response of Bacillus cereus treated with low-temperature nitrogen gas plasma.
J Appl Microbiol, 2013/9;115(3):689-702.
Mols M[1], Mastwijk H, Nierop Groot M, Abee T
Affiliations
PMID: 23758316DOI: 10.1111/jam.12278
Impact factor: 4.059
Abstract
aims: This study was conducted to investigate the inactivation kinetics of Bacillus cereus vegetative cells upon exposure to low-temperature nitrogen gas plasma and to reveal the mode of inactivation by transcriptome profiling.
methods and results: Exponentially growing B. cereus cells were filtered and put on agar plates. The plates, carrying the filters with the vegetative cells, were placed into low-temperature nitrogen gas plasma at atmospheric pressure. After different exposure times, the cells were harvested for RNA extraction and enumeration. The RNA was used to perform whole-transcriptome profiling using DNA microarrays. The transcriptome profile showed a large overlap with profiles obtained from conditions generating reactive oxygen species in B. cereus. However, excess radicals such as peroxynitrite, hydroxyl and superoxide could not be detected using radical-specific fluorescence staining. Lack of UV-specific responses including factors involved in DNA damage repair is in line with the absence of UV-specific emission in the afterglow of the nitrogen gas plasma as analysed using optical emission spectroscopy (OES).
conclusions: Antibacterial activity of nitrogen gas plasma is not based on UV radiation. Exposure to nitrogen gas plasma leads to oxidative stress and inactivation of targeted cells. A secondary oxidative stress with the indicative formation of reactive oxygen species within cells could not be observed.
significance and impact of the study: This study represents the first investigation of differential gene expression on a genome-wide scale in B. cereus following nitrogen gas plasma exposure. This study may help to design economically feasible, safe and effective plasma decontamination devices.
Keywords: atmospheric pressure; bacterial inactivation; low-temperature plasma; microarray analysis; surface disinfection
MeSH terms
Anti-Bacterial Agents; Bacillus cereus; Cold Temperature; DNA Repair; Decontamination; Gene Expression Profiling; Nitrogen; Oligonucleotide Array Sequence Analysis; Plasma Gases; Transcriptome; Ultraviolet Rays
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