Discovery of a novel antimicrobial protein from Lactobacillus plantarum by computational screening and experimental...

Uncovering antibacterial proteins from Lactobacillus plantarum is of great theoretical and practical significance. However, given the large number of samples involved in experimental screening, traditional screening methods face huge challenges. In this study, we employed bioinformatics methods to comprehensively analyze 59,618 proteins in 20 species of Lactobacillus plantarum. We identified a series of antibacterial membrane proteins with unknown functions. By using the antibacterial activity prediction algorithm, the membrane protein FS26 exhibited significant antibacterial activity. We further conducted molecular dynamics simulations to explore the molecular mechanism of the membrane protein FS26 in recognizing various lipids. Our results revealed key interactions between FS26 and cardiolipin during simulations. Experimentally, we verified the antibacterial activity through the inhibition zone, the antibacterial curve, and microscopic fluorescence techniques. Collectively, our results provide new insights for the development of biological preservation.