Anti-adherence Activity of Monomicrobial and Polymicrobial Food-Derived Enterococcus spp. Biofilms Against Pathogenic Bacteria.

ABSTRACT

Enterococcus species are commensal organisms of the gastrointestinal tract and can also be isolated from traditional food products. They are used as probiotics in animals and less often in humans. This study aimed to investigate the antibacterial and anti-adhesive activities of twelve food-origin Enterococcus spp. biofilms on stainless steel AISI 316 L against foodborne pathogens, including Listeria monocytogenes CECT4032, Pseudomonas aeruginosa ATCC27853, and Escherichia coli ATCC25922. The antimicrobial and co-aggregation abilities of Enterococcus spp. were evaluated using spots-agar test and spectrophotometry aggregation assay, respectively. The anti-adhesive activity of selected strains on pathogenic bacteria was tested using serial dilution technique. Enterococci strains in planktonic mode showed strong inhibition activity against different pathogens tested with a significant difference in co-aggregation capacity. Moreover, L. monocytogenes and E. coli presented a low auto-aggregation rate compared to P. aeruginosa, which showed an amount of 11.25%. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) revealed that biofilm biomass of Enterococcus spp. increased after 10 days. The thick layer of enterococci biofilms on AISI 316 L caused a low adhesion of L. monocytogenes, resulting in a reduction of approximately 2.8 log CFU/cm² for some selected strains. Additionally, Enterococcus monocultures' biofilms were more efficient than polymicrobial cultures (a cocktail of enterococci strains) in controlling pathogen adhesion. These results indicate that monocultures of Enterococcus spp. biofilms could be used to prevent the adhesion of pathogenic bacteria on AISI 316 L.