Shotgun Proteomics Analysis, Functional Networks, and Peptide Biomarkers for Seafood-Originating Biogenic-Amine-Producing Bacteria

Biogenic amine-producing bacteria are responsible for the production of basic nitrogenous compounds (histamine, cadaverine, tyramine, and putrescine) following the spoilage of food due to microorganisms. In this study, we adopted a shotgun proteomics strategy to characterize 15 foodborne strains of biogenic-amine-producing bacteria. A total of 10,673 peptide spectrum matches belonging to 4081 peptides and corresponding to 1811 proteins were identified. Relevant functional pathways were determined, and strains were differentiated into hierarchical clusters. An expected protein-protein interaction network was created (260 nodes/1973 interactions). Most of the determined proteins were associated with networks/pathways of energy, putrescine metabolism, and host-virus interaction. Additionally, 556 peptides were identified as virulence factors. Moreover, 77 species-specific peptide biomarkers corresponding to 64 different proteins were proposed to identify 10 bacterial species. This represents a major proteomic dataset of biogenic-amine-producing strains. These results may also be suitable for new treatments for food intoxication and for tracking microbial sources in foodstuffs.