Rapid biofilm eradication of the antimicrobial peptide 1018-K6 against Staphylococcus aureus: A new potential tool to fight bacterial biofilms

Staphylococcal food poisoning - caused by certain enterotoxigenic staphylococci - is one of the most common worldwide foodborne diseases. In this context, bacterial biofilms on food processing plan surfaces can represent critical sources of contamination, being more resistant to cleaning and disinfection procedures. Therefore, it is important to prevent and control biofilm formation in food facilities. In the last years, antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) have emerged as promising biofilm contrasting tools. The recently developed AMP, named 1018-K6, revealed a significant bactericidal (MBC 10 mu M) and biofilm-preventing efficiency (MBIC 50 mu M) against a reference ATCC strain of Listeria monocytogenes and remarkable stability under different environmental conditions. In this work, a kinetic of action of 1018-K6 against two strong biofilm-producing reference strains of Staphylococcus aureus (including a methicillin-resistant S. aureus strain) and a moderate biofilm producer enterotoxigenic S. aureus isolated from cheese, was performed. The peptide showed an impressive rapid mode of action, eradicating established biofilms within few minutes. Bactericidal activity against planktonic cells and inhibition of biofilm formation were also observed. The significant properties of 1018-K6 make it a promising candidate for applications in food-safety and quality control.