| Summary: | This study was aimed at screening potential probiotic candidates to enhance the antimicrobial activity of <i>Artemisia argyi</i> against foodborne pathogens. Ten LAB strains were isolated from natural <i>Artemisia argyi</i> fermentation liquor (AAFL) and assessed for safety and antimicrobial ability. Therein, <i>Lactiplantibacillus plantarum</i> WLPL01, <i>Lacticaseibacillus casei</i> WLCA01, WLCA02, and WLCA03, and <i>Lactobacillus harbiness</i> WLHA01 were further evaluated for their potential probiotic properties (gastrointestinal tolerance and adhesion capacity). The results suggested that <i>L. plantarum</i> WLPL01 exhibited excellent properties and was, therefore, selected as the starter for <i>A. argyi</i> leaves fermentation. Then, <i>L. plantarum</i> WLPL01-fermented AAFL (AAFL-LP) was further investigated for its antimicrobial activity against foodborne pathogens. The results demonstrated that the inhibitory effect of AAFL-LP to foodborne pathogens, such as <i>Listeria monocytogenes</i> CMCC54007, <i>Salmonella</i> Typhimurium ATCC 13311, and <i>Candida albicans</i> ATCC 14053, was enhanced when compared to spontaneously fermented AAFL (AAFL-spontaneous). In addition, an analysis of the whole genome of <i>L. plantarum</i> WLPL01 revealed the presence of 13.9 kb long and 16 plantaricin-encoding loci (<i>pln</i> locus), and the increased antimicrobial activities of AAFL-LP might correlate with the production of bacteriocin. Our results indicate that <i>L. plantarum</i> WLPL01 can be used as a starter for <i>Artemisia argyi</i> fermentation to enhance its antimicrobial activity against foodborne pathogens.
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