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Published on: May 4, 2018
Synergistic Antibacterial Effect of the Combination of ε-Polylysine and Nisin against Enterococcus faecalis
Fang Liu1, Mei Liu2, Lihui Du3
1Institute of Agricultural Products Processing, Jiangsu Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Nanjing 210014, People's Republic of China.
Abstract:
This study evaluated the antibacterial effect of the combination of ε-polylysine (ε-PL) and nisin against Enterococcus faecalis strains. The combination of ε-PL and nisin showed synergistic antibacterial activity against three Enterococcus strains. Scanning electron microscopy and a membrane permeability assay revealed that the combined treatment with ε-PL and nisin synergistically damaged the cell morphology of E. faecalis strain R612Z1 cells. Both ε-PL and nisin can dissipate the transmembrane electric potential of E. faecalis R612Z1 cells, but these peptides did not affect the transmembrane pH gradient. The combination of ε-PL and nisin can produce a high reactive oxygen species level in E. faecalis R612Z1 cells. The results indicated that the uptake of ε-PL into cells was promoted through nisin and that the combination of ε-PL and nisin could produce a high reactive oxygen species level in E. faecalis R612Z1 cells, leading to cell growth inhibition.
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