Quorum Sensing Disruption in Food Systems: Anti-Virulence Strategies for Agro-Food Safety

Microbial contamination and biofilm formation in food systems remain major challenges for global food safety and public health. Pathogenic bacteria such as Salmonella, Escherichia coli, Listeria monocytogenes, and Staphylococcus aureus regulate virulence, biofilm formation, and toxin production through quorum sensing (QS), a cell-to-cell communication system that coordinates gene expression in response to population density. Traditional antimicrobial approaches rely on bactericidal or bacteriostatic agents, which often contribute to antimicrobial resistance and may disrupt beneficial microbiota. Consequently, there is growing interest in anti-virulence strategies that attenuate pathogenicity without necessarily inhibiting bacterial growth. Quorum sensing disruption, commonly referred to as quorum quenching (QQ), has emerged as a promising alternative strategy. Natural and synthetic QS inhibitors derived from plants, microorganisms, enzymes, and food-grade compounds have shown potential in reducing virulence, biofilm formation, and contamination in food environments while maintaining safety and regulatory compliance.Despite the increasing number of studies demonstrating quorum sensing inhibition in laboratory settings, translation into practical food safety interventions remains limited. Several gaps persist, including insufficient understanding of the mechanisms underlying QS disruption in complex food matrices, limited characterization of food-safe quorum quenching compounds, and challenges in integrating these strategies into food processing, preservation, and packaging systems. Additionally, the long-term ecological impact of QS inhibitors on microbial communities and their potential role in preventing antimicrobial resistance development require deeper investigation.Recent advances in microbial genomics, metabolomics, synthetic biology, and bioengineering provide new tools to identify, characterize, and optimize quorum sensing inhibitors and enzymes capable of degrading signalling molecules. Moreover, innovations in bioactive packaging, nano-delivery systems, and microbial biotechnology are opening opportunities for the development of practical quorum quenching-based interventions in the food industry.This Research Topic aims to bring together interdisciplinary research exploring quorum sensing disruption as a safe and sustainable anti-virulence strategy for food safety applications. The goal is to highlight novel discoveries, mechanistic insights, and translational approaches that can enable the development of effective QS-targeted interventions to control foodborne pathogens while minimizing resistance pressure and preserving microbial ecosystem balance.This Research Topic welcomes original research articles, reviews, mini-reviews, and perspective papers addressing innovative strategies for quorum sensing disruption in food safety and microbial control. Relevant themes include:• Discovery and characterization of natural quorum sensing inhibitors from plants, microorganisms, and food-derived compounds• Enzymatic quorum quenching mechanisms targeting signalling molecules such as AHLs, AI-2, and peptide signals• Quorum sensing regulation of biofilm formation and virulence in foodborne pathogens• Anti-virulence strategies targeting QS systems in Salmonella, Listeria, E. coli, Klebsiella, Acinetobacter, and other relevant microbes• QS disruption approaches in food processing environments, food packaging, and preservation systems• Nanotechnology and delivery systems for food-safe QS inhibitors• Synthetic biology and engineered microbial systems for quorum quenching• Interaction between quorum sensing inhibition and microbial community dynamics in food ecosystems• Applications of omics technologies and imaging tools to study QS-mediated biofilms in food environments• Regulatory, safety, and translational considerations for QS-based anti-virulence strategies in the food industry• Economic and life-cycle assessment of QQ-based anti-virulence interventions in food systems Topic editors: Ravishankar Rai Vittal, Jamuna Aswathanarayan Source: https://www.frontiersin.org/research-topics/79379/quorum-sensing-disruption-in-food-systems-anti-virulence-strategies-for-agro-food-safety