Antibacterial Activity and Virulence Attenuation of Peptides-Zinc Nanocomposite Against Vibrio Alginolyticus

Vibrio alginolyticus (V. alginolyticus) is a common foodborne pathogen that poses a serious threat to food safety, therefore it urgently needs to be effectively controlled. In this study, a novel peptides-zinc nanocomposite (P@ZnNP) with antibacterial activity was fabricated from crimson sapper scales peptides (CSSP). The effect of P@ZnNP on V. alginolyticus was expected from the antibacterial and anti-virulence properties, as well as corresponding mechanism. The minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) and time-killing curve data showed that P@ZnNP with a concentration of 0.23 mg/mL exhibited significant antibacterial activity against V. alginolyticus. The analysis of the antibacterial mechanism of planktonic V. alginolyticus illustrated that it acted through membrane damage. The virulence related results revealed that the motility, biofilm formation, extracellular polysaccharide production, and alkaline serine protease synthesis of V. alginolyticus were significantly inhibited. Furthermore, in fresh shrimp models, P@ZnNP could reduce bacterial abundance and attenuate virulence. Given these findings, it is believed that P@ZnNP has the potential to become an antibacterial agent against V. alginolyticus in the food industry.