Antibacterial mechanism of Lactiplantibacillus plantarum SHY96 cell-free supernatant against Listeria monocytogenes revealed by metabolomics and potential application on chicken breast meat preservation

The cell-free supernatant of Lactiplantibacillus plantarum (LCFS) is considered a potential natural antimicrobial agent due to its outstanding antimicrobial activity. This study demonstrated that the cell-free supernatant of L. plantarum SHY96 (LCFS96) effectively inhibits the growth and biofilm formation of L. monocytogenes CMCC(B)54002 (L. monocytogenes_02) by reducing cell metabolic activity and damaging cell structure. Metabolomic analysis revealed that LCFS96 significantly altered 450 intracellular metabolites, affecting key metabolic pathways including linoleic acid metabolism, pyrimidine metabolism, purine metabolism, pantothenic acid and CoA biosynthesis, and the TCA cycle. Additionally, application of LCFS96 significantly reduced L. monocytogenes_02 viable counts by 84.93%, while maintaining the pH, TVB-N and organoleptic properties of chicken meat under refrigeration at 4 °C for 12 days. These findings highlight the antimicrobial mechanism and potential application of LCFS96 in extending the shelf-life of meat products.