Transcriptome of Escherichia coli in response to abiotic intervention mediated by gaseous chlorine dioxide and ozone on non-host tomato

Escherichia coli is a foodborne pathogens detected on fresh tomato produce. Gaseous chlorine dioxide (ClO2) treatments is an effective method to reduce bacterial growth on tomato. In this project, we are testing the hypothesis that abiotic intervention mediated by gaseous ClO2 leads to potential adaptation and acclimation in E. coli. By use of next-generation sequencing applications, our aims are to: 1) Discover genes and co-expression network that are associated defense response to gaseous ClO2 stressor; 2) Provide evidence of potential acclimation and adaptation of E. coli during ClO2 treatment; 3) establish an algorithmic pipeline to facilitate future omics data analysis to elucidate the transcriptional regulatory network in bacterial species. Outcomes of this exploratory research are expected to advance our knowledge of chemical induced gene co-expression network, towards novel applications in selection of target molecules and pathways for eliminating the bacterial contamination in food industry.