title: Cell wall as a target for bacteria inactivation by pulsed electric fields.
abstract: The integrity and morphology of bacteria is sustained by the cell wall, the target of the main microbial inactivation processes. One promising approach to inactivation is based on the use of pulsed electric fields (PEF). The current dogma is that irreversible cell membrane electro-permeabilisation causes the death of the bacteria. However, the actual effect on the cell-wall architecture has been poorly explored. Here we combine atomic force microscopy and electron microscopy to study the cell-wall organization of living Bacillus pumilus bacteria at the nanoscale. For vegetative bacteria, exposure to PEF led to structural disorganization correlated with morphological and mechanical alterations of the cell wall. For spores, PEF exposure led to the partial destruction of coat protein nanostructures, associated with internal alterations of cortex and core. Our findings reveal for the first time that the cell wall and coat architecture are directly involved in the electro-eradication of bacteria.
authors.affiliation: CNRS; IPBS (Institut de Pharmacologie et de Biologie Structurale); 205 route de Narbonne BP64182, F-31077 Toulouse, France.|Université de Toulouse; UPS; IPBS; F-31077 Toulouse, France.
authors.forename: Flavien
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Pillet
authors.affiliation: Université de Toulouse; UPS; IPBS; F-31077 Toulouse, France.|CNRS, LAAS, 7 avenue du Colonel Roche, F-31400 Toulouse, France.|CNRS, UMR 7565, SRSMC, Vandœuvre-lès-Nancy, France.|Université de Lorraine, UMR 7565, Faculté de Pharmacie, Nancy, France.
authors.forename: Cécile
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Formosa-Dague
authors.affiliation: CNRS; IPBS (Institut de Pharmacologie et de Biologie Structurale); 205 route de Narbonne BP64182, F-31077 Toulouse, France.|Université de Toulouse; UPS; IPBS; F-31077 Toulouse, France.
authors.forename: Houda
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Baaziz
authors.affiliation: CNRS; IPBS (Institut de Pharmacologie et de Biologie Structurale); 205 route de Narbonne BP64182, F-31077 Toulouse, France.|CNRS, LAAS, 7 avenue du Colonel Roche, F-31400 Toulouse, France.
authors.forename: Etienne
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Dague
authors.affiliation: CNRS; IPBS (Institut de Pharmacologie et de Biologie Structurale); 205 route de Narbonne BP64182, F-31077 Toulouse, France.|Université de Toulouse; UPS; IPBS; F-31077 Toulouse, France.
authors.forename: Marie-Pierre
authors.initials: MP
authors.lastname: Rols
mesh_terms: D000069979:Bacillus pumilus / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000648:ultrastructure; D002473:Cell Wall / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000648:ultrastructure; D004203:Disinfection / Q000379:methods*; D004560:Electricity; D050296:Microbial Viability
references.citation: J Gen Microbiol. 1989 Oct;135(10):2717-22
references.pmid: 2517297
references.citation: Lancet. 1990 Oct 20;336(8721):982-6
references.pmid: 1977014
references.citation: Trends Microbiol. 1994 Feb;2(2):57-60
references.pmid: 8162443
references.citation: Clin Infect Dis. 1995 Jun;20 Suppl 2:S242-50
references.pmid: 7548565
references.citation: Nat Biotechnol. 1998 Feb;16(2):168-71
references.pmid: 9487524
references.citation: Br J Cancer. 1998 Jun;77(12):2336-42
references.pmid: 9649155
references.citation: Nature. 1957 Apr 27;179(4565):841-7
references.pmid: 13430717
references.citation: Biophys J. 2005 Jan;88(1):603-8
references.pmid: 15501940
references.citation: Nat Rev Microbiol. 2005 Mar;3(3):238-50
references.pmid: 15703760
references.citation: Langmuir. 2005 Nov 8;21(23):10710-6
references.pmid: 16262341
references.citation: Bacteriol Rev. 1969 Jun;33(2):346-78
references.pmid: 4979698
references.citation: Phys Rev E Stat Phys Plasmas Fluids Relat Interdiscip Topics. 2000 Jul;62(1 Pt B):1034-44
references.pmid: 11088560
references.citation: J Microbiol Methods. 2001 Jun;45(2):119-26
references.pmid: 11311397
references.citation: Appl Environ Microbiol. 2001 Jul;67(7):3092-101
references.pmid: 11425727
references.citation: Cell. 2003 Jun 13;113(6):767-76
references.pmid: 12809607
references.citation: Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1965 Sep;54(3):704-11
references.pmid: 4956288
references.citation: Sci Am. 1969 May;220(5):92-8
references.pmid: 5777207
references.citation: Nano Lett. 2007 Oct;7(10):3026-30
references.pmid: 17850167
references.citation: Langmuir. 2007 Nov 20;23(24):11977-9
references.pmid: 17941657
references.citation: Int J Food Microbiol. 2007 Dec 15;120(3):259-65
references.pmid: 17961779
references.citation: Langmuir. 2009 Jan 6;25(1):403-9
references.pmid: 19063625
references.citation: Trends Microbiol. 2010 Feb;18(2):59-66
references.pmid: 20060721
references.citation: Int J Food Microbiol. 2010 Oct 15;143(3):125-35
references.pmid: 20739077
references.citation: Nat Commun. 2010;1:27
references.pmid: 20975688
references.citation: Mol Microbiol. 2011 Dec;82(5):1096-109
references.pmid: 22059678
references.citation: Sci Rep. 2012;2:575
references.pmid: 22893853
references.citation: J Appl Microbiol. 2012 Oct;113(4):723-36
references.pmid: 22583565
references.citation: Nat Rev Microbiol. 2013 Jan;11(1):33-44
references.pmid: 23202530
references.citation: Micron. 2013 May;48:26-33
references.pmid: 23522742
references.citation: J Biochem. 2013 Nov;154(5):409-17
references.pmid: 23921501
references.citation: Nat Commun. 2013;4:2926
references.pmid: 24336094
references.citation: Crit Rev Food Sci Nutr. 2014;54(11):1415-26
references.pmid: 24580538
references.citation: Biotechnol Bioeng. 2014 Apr;111(4):654-63
references.pmid: 24203291
references.citation: Nanoscale. 2015 May 21;7(19):8843-57
references.pmid: 25909392