Long-chain unsaturated free fatty acids reduce the host cell invasion of <i>Listeria monocytogenes</i> outbreak strains.

ABSTRACT: The Gram-positive bacterium Listeria monocytogenes is a highly adaptable pathogen capable of causing severe foodborne infections, particularly in vulnerable populations. During infection, L. monocytogenes uses a variety of virulence factors to invade and multiply within host cells. The transcriptional regulator PrfA controls the expression of these virulence factors and is essential for the intracellular lifestyle of L. monocytogenes. Long-chain unsaturated free fatty acids (FFAs) have long been recognized for their antimicrobial activity and were recently shown to inhibit PrfA-dependent virulence gene expression in L. monocytogenes. To date, the antimicrobial and anti-virulent activities of FFAs have been primarily studied in laboratory strains. However, to ful

SUBMITTER: Borreby C 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11906444 | biostudies-literature | 2025

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature