Metabolomics analysis of Lactobacillus plantarum ATCC 14917 adhesion activity under initial acid and alkali stress

The adhesion ability of Lactobacillus plantarum affects retention time in the human gastro-intestinal tract, as well as influencing the interaction with their host. In this study, the relationship between the adhesion activity of, and metabolic changes in, L. plantarum ATCC 14917 under initial acid and alkali stress was evaluated by analyzing auto-aggregation, protein adhesion and cell adhesion in vitro. Based on scanning electron microscope (SEM) and transmission electron microscope (TEM) analysis, the morphology of the bacteria became thickset and the thickness of their cell walls decreased under initial alkali stress. The fold changes of auto-aggregation, adhere to mucin and HT-29 cell lines of L. plantarum ATCC 14917 in the acid group were increased by 1.141, 1.125 and 1.156, respectively. But decreased significantly in the alkali group (fold changes with 0.842, 0.728 and 0.667). Adhesion—related protein increased in the acid group but declined in the alkali group at the mRNA expression level according to real time polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) analysis. The changes in the metabolite profiles of L. plantarum ATCC 14917 were characterized using Ultra-Performance Liquid Chromatography-Electrospray ionization-Quadrupole-Time of Flight-mass spectrometry (UPLS-ESI-Q-TOF-MS). In the alkali group, the content of a lot of substances involved in the energy and amino acid metabolism decreased, but the content of some substances involved in the energy metabolism was slightly increased in the acid group. These findings demonstrate that energy metabolism is positively correlated with the adhesion ability of L. plantarum ATCC 14917. The amino-acids metabolism, especially the amino acids related to pH-homeostasis mechanisms (lysine, aspartic acid, arginine, proline and glutamic acid), showed an obvious effect on the adhesion ability of L. plantarum ATCC 14917. This investigation provides a better understanding of L. plantarum’s adhesion mechanisms under initial pH stress.