Soybean protein and peptides have the potential to promote the growth of Lactobacillus, but the mechanisms involved are not well understood. The purpose of this study is to investigate differentially expressed genes (DEGs) of Limosilactobacillus reuteri (L. reuteri) LR08 responding to soybean protein and peptides using transcriptome. The results showed that both digested protein (dpro) and digested peptides (dpep) could enhance a purine biosynthesis pathway which could provide more nucleic acid and ATP for bacteria growth. Moreover, dpep could be used instead of dpro to promote the ABC transporters, especially the genes involved in the transportation of various amino acids. Interestingly, dpro and dpep played opposite roles in modulating DEGs from the acc and fab gene families which participate in fatty acid biosynthesis. These not only provide a new direction for developing nitrogen-sourced prebiotics in the food industry but could also help us to understand the fundamental mechanism of the effects of dpro and dpep on their growth and metabolisms and provides relevant evidence for further investigation.
Keywords: ABC transporters; L. reuteri; fatty acid biosynthesis; purine metabolism; soybean peptides; soybean protein; transcriptomics.