Mechanism of antibacterial action of oxymatrine from Sophora flavescens Ait. against Edwardsiella tarda, a zoonotic pathogen

In the severe situation of the abuse of antibiotics and the continuous emergence of drug-resistant strains, searching for new antibacterial agents is an urgent need. In this study, after exposing E. tarda to oxymatrine which is non-toxic, no residue and easily soluble in water, its antibacterial ability and action mechanism were investigated. The results showed oxymatrine had antibacterial property against the tested strains, and it changed the completeness of bacterial cytomembrane and cell wall, induced apoptosis in bacterial cells, blocked the process of cell cycle and suppressed bacterial DNA and protein biosynthesis, suggesting it was a promising antibacterial agent for the prophylaxis and therapy of human and animal diseases resulted from E. tarda. From what we know, this is the inaugural study to investigate the antibacterial action mechanism of oxymatrine against microbe.