title: Hen egg white lysozyme permeabilizes Escherichia coli outer and inner membranes.
abstract: Natural preservatives answer the consumer demand for long shelf life foods, synthetic molecules being perceived as a health risk. Lysozyme is already used because of its muramidase activity against Gram-positive bacteria. It is also described as active against some Gram-negative bacteria; membrane disruption would be involved, but the mechanism remains unknown. In this study, a spectrophotometric method using the mutant Escherichia coli ML-35p has been adapted to investigate membrane disruption by lysozyme for long durations. Lysozyme rapidly increases the permeability of the outer membrane of E. coli due to large size pore formation. A direct delayed activity of lysozyme against the inner membrane is also demonstrated, but without evidence of perforations.
authors.affiliation: Agrocampus Ouest, UMR1253 Science et technologie du lait et de l'œuf, 65 rue de St-Brieuc, F-35042 Rennes, France.
authors.forename: Melanie
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Derde
authors.forename: Valérie
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Lechevalier
authors.forename: Catherine
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Guérin-Dubiard
authors.forename: Marie-Françoise
authors.initials: MF
authors.lastname: Cochet
authors.forename: Sophie
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Jan
authors.forename: Florence
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Baron
authors.forename: Michel
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Gautier
authors.forename: Véronique
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Vié
authors.forename: Françoise
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Nau
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000494:pharmacology*; D002463:Cell Membrane Permeability / Q000187:drug effects*; D002645:Chickens; D004926:Escherichia coli / Q000737:chemistry / Q000187:drug effects*; D009113:Muramidase / Q000494:pharmacology*
chemical_list: D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents; C421864:hen egg lysozyme; D009113:Muramidase