Listeria monocytogenes exposure to chlorine dioxide

Listeria monocytogenes strain 10403S has been studied extensively for stress response activity toward multiple stressors (acid, osmotic, cold, high temperature, etc.) as well as multiple stress regulons (SigB, CtsR, HrcA, etc.). Here we aimed to determine the transcriptional response of Listeria monocytogenes in early log phase towards the strong oxidative stress imposed by ClO2. The elucidation of such a response allows for further a more completel understanding of the mechanism of inactivation by sanitizers, specifically ClO2. Independent RNA isolations were performed for strain 10403S with and without exposure to ClO2 from cells grown to early log phase. Four biological replicates were used in competitive whole-genome microarray experiments. For each set of hybridizations, RNA from a control sample of Listeria monocytogenes was hybridized with RNA from a culture of L. monocytogenes following exposure to ClO2. Dye swapping was performed for the four replicates to mitigate any concerns of dye bias.