Smell of stress: An in-depth look into the Bacillus subtilis 168 volatilome during pH stress using secondary electrospray ionization-Orbitrap mass spectrometry
H. G. Mengers, F. Völker, L. M. Blank
Abstract
Decoding Bacillus subtilis’ Volatilome Under Acid Stress in Real Time with SESI-Orbitrap
This study reveals the acid stress volatilome of Bacillus subtilis using real-time SESI-Orbitrap MS, offering unprecedented temporal resolution (0.3 Hz) during pH shock in resting cells. Over 450 compounds were tracked across 16,000 data points, uncovering both immediate and delayed VOC responses. Acetoin dominated, as expected, but a novel signal (C₄H₆O) also emerged. This work highlights SESI’s power to monitor microbial stress responses via off-gas VOCs, non-invasively, instantly, and at the molecular scale.