Mechanism of geraniol against E. coli infection by regulating YDIV

Purpose Geraniol, an active component found in the essential oil of various medicinal plants, possesses a wide range of antibacterial properties, including against E. coli. Nevertheless, the precise inhibitory mechanism of geraniol on E. coli remains elusive. Methods Co-cultivation of multidrug-resistant Escherichia coli with geraniol was performed to investigate changes in biomass, gene expression, intracellular iron concentration, phagocytic activity, and complement-mediated killing ability. Additionally, protein expression alterations were assessed to evaluate the regulatory effects of geraniol. Results The compound geraniol demonstrated a downregulation of ydiv and iron metabolism gene fep A, fecB and fhu F expression. Concomitantly, it was observed that linalool led to a decrease in intracellular iron ion concentration. Meanwhile, treatment of E. coli with geraniol resulted in a downregulation of ompW gene expression. Additionally, it led to a decrease in the killing ability of antiserum complement and an increase in the phagocytic capacity of macrophages. Furthermore, geraniol demonstrated augmented binding effects, possibly facilitated through hydrogen bonding, relying on structural simulation or MST. Conclusion These results suggested for the first time that geraniol by regulating the iron transport-related proteins YdiV, thereby decreasing the ability of antiserum complement, and an increase in the phagocytic capacity of macrophages exerting inhibited E. coli .