Abstract: To investigate the effect of food additives on biofilm formation (BF), Staphylococcus aureus (S.aureus) from spoiled food were isolated and identified. BF of this strain was tested in 96-well microplates in the presence of food additives. The results showed that BF of the strains was inhibited by low concentrations of preservatives (potassium sorbate and sodium benzoate). No biofilm was formed when the concentration of anticorrosive reached 0.4 g/L or higher. The BF inhibiting capacity of potassium sorbate was much greater than that of sodium benzoate. Generally, glycol mannate sulfate had greater BF inhibiting action than diacylglycerol at concentrations of 2—4g/L. Glycol mannate sulfate and diacylglycerol had maximum BF inhibiting capacity at concentrations of 3 g/L and 4 g/L, respectively. For sucrose ester emulsifier, SE7 and SE13 inhibited BF at concentrations of 0.3—4 g/L, while SE11 inhibited BF at all concentrations tested. Nonionic surfactants such as Span-60 and Tween-80 showed different effects on BF of S.aureus, which might be related to their amphipathic property. In summary, all these tested food additives had inhibitory effect on biofilm formation of food-borne S. aureus. This study will provide references for the prevention and control of bacteria biofilm formation.

Key words: Staphylococcus aureus, food additives, biofilm formation