Harnessing stylicin to suppress Vibrio harveyi virulence through multi-scale molecular interventions: Transcriptomic...

This study evaluated the antibiofilm potential of stylicin from Penaeus vannamei against Vibrio harveyi. Stylicin was found to significantly affect cell morphology and biofilm density, as evidenced by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) imaging at a minimal biofilm inhibitory concentration (100 μg). Produced 74,107,048 clean reads (control: 36,354,900; stylicin-treated: 37,752,148) and identified 215 differentially expressed genes (DEGs), of which 131 were upregulated and 84 were downregulated. Genes, such as the NO-inducible flavohemoprotein, the NnrS family protein and the cryptochrome/photolyase family protein, which mainly help to maintain physiological activity, were found to be upregulated by stylicin. The downregulated genes were mainly associated with the Type VI secretion system, adhesion, and biofilm formation, which are associated with the main virulence factors of V. harveyi. Further protein-protein interaction analysis identified five potential target proteins for stylicin (CysD, MetK, GroEL, Gap, and TssJ). Docking studies showed strong binding affinity, and optimal docking scores, indicating highly favourable interactions. Molecular dynamics simulations confirmed the enhanced stability and compactness of the protein-stylicin complexes which exhibited stable hydrogen bonds and non-bonded contacts. These findings highlight the potential of stylicin by targeting key virulence factors of V. harveyi, paving the way for further validation and therapeutic development.