Transcriptome Analysis of Pseudomonas aeruginosa Biofilm Following the Exposure to Malaysian Stingless Bee Honey

Introduction: Malaysian stingless bee honey (Trigona) has been aroused as a potential antimicrobial compound with antibiofilm activity. The capability of the gram-negative bacillus P. aeruginosa to sustain a fatal infection is encoded in the bacterium genome.

Methods: In the current study, a transcriptome investigation was performed to explore the mechanism underlying the biofilm dispersal of P. aeruginosa after the exposure to Trigona honey.

Results: Microarray analysis of the Pseudomonas biofilm treated by 20% Trigona honey has revealed a down-regulation of 3478 genes among the 6085 screened genes. Specifically, around 13.5% of the down-regulated genes were biofilm-associated genes. The mapping of the biofilm-associated pathways has shown an ultimate decrease in the expression levels of the D-GMP signaling pathway and diguanylate cyclases (DGCs) genes responsible for c-di-GMP formation.

Conclusion: We predominantly report the lowering of c-di-GMP through the down-regulation of DGC genes as the main mechanism of biofilm inhibition by Trigona honey.