From target identification to intervention: Tackling microbial contamination challenges in cultivated meat production...

Microbial contamination could present a potential risk for cultivated meat industry. In this study, six microbial contaminants originating from the cell culture environment were identified, and WGS-based functional mapping suggested potential metabolic complementarity and ecological robustness among them. These isolates were assembled into a synthetic microbial community (SynCom) to simulate a "worse-case" contamination scenario during the production of cell cultured meat in contrast to single strain contamination. Within 11 tested antimicrobial peptides and proteins, the synthetic peptide 1018-k6 was identified as the most effective antimicrobial agent, showing a minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of 37.5 μg/mL against the SynCom. The long-term suppression assay demonstrated that 1018-k6 maintained complete microbial inhibition over a 14-day production cycle, even under exposure to high bacterial loads of 10⁶ CFU/mL. Furthermore, real-time monitoring of cell growth and resazurin assay confirmed that the effective dose exerted no adverse effects on cell proliferation or metabolic activity. By bridging the gap from target identification to microbial intervention, this study provides a potential microbial barrier to protect long-term, animal component-free cellular agriculture.