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1. Centrifugally spun PVP / ZnO composite fibers with different surfactants and their use as antibacterial agents

   https://doi.org/10.1002/app.54314  

   Sanchez, Jo Ann; Ibrahim, Amin; Materon, Luis; Parsons, Jason G.; Alcoutlabi, Mataz (July 2023, Journal of Applied Polymer Science)

   Abstract Polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) fibers embedded with Zinc Oxide nanoparticles (ZnO NPs) were prepared by the centrifugal spinning of aqueous PVP solutions and ZnO NPs. The ZnO NPs were synthesized and coated with either cetyltrimethylammonium bromide or hexadecyltrimethylammonium bromide. The structure and morphology of the nanocomposite fibers were studied using scanning electron microscopy, X‐ray diffraction, energy‐dispersive X‐ray spectroscopy, Fourier transformed infrared spectroscopy and Thermogravimetric analysis. The effect of surfactant coating on the antibacterial activity of ZnO NPs and PVP/ZnO nanocomposite fibers againstEscherichia coli(E. coli) andBacillus megaterium(B. megaterium) bacteria was systematically investigated. The present study indicated that coating the ZnO NPs with surfactants resulted in large and uniform inhibition of bacterial growth. 

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2. Graphene Oxide-Hybridized Waterborne Epoxy Coating for Simultaneous Anticorrosive and Antibiofilm Functions

   https://doi.org/10.3389/fmats.2022.910152  

   Zhou, Ying; Wang, Haoran; Zhang, Cheng; Zhou, Qixin; Rodrigues, Debora F. (July 2022, Frontiers in Materials)

   Multifunctional coatings with simultaneous antibacterial and anticorrosive properties are essential for marine environments, oil and gas industry, medical settings, and domestic/public appliances to preserve integrity and functionality of pipes, instruments, and surfaces. In this work, we developed a simple and effective method to prepare graphene oxide (GO)-hybridized waterborne epoxy (GOWE) coating to simultaneously improve anticorrosive and antibacterial properties . The effects of different GO filler ratios (0.05, 0.1, and 0.5, 1 wt%) on the electrochemical and antibacterial behaviors of the waterborne epoxy coating were investigated over short- and long-term periods. The electrochemical behavior was analyzed with salt solution for 64 days. The antibacterial effect of GOWE coating was evaluated with Shewanella oneidensis (MR-1), which is a microorganism that can be involved in corrosion. Our results revealed that concentrations as low as 0.1 wt% of the GO was effective performance than the waterborne epoxy coating without graphene oxide. This result is due to the high hydrophilicity of the graphene oxide fillers, which allowed great dispersion in the waterborne epoxy coating matrix. Furthermore, this study used a corrosion relevant bacterium as a model organism, that is, Shewanella oneidensis (MR-1), which is more relevant for real-word applications. This as-prepared GO-hybridized waterborne polymeric hybrid film provides new insight into the application of 2D nanomaterial polymer composites for simultaneous anticorrosive and antibacterial applications. 

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3. Forcespun polyvinylpyrrolidone/copper and polyethylene oxide/copper composite fibers and their use as antibacterial agents

   https://doi.org/10.1002/app.51773  

   Hasan, Md Toukir; Gonzalez, Ramiro; Munoz, Ari Alexis; Materon, Luis; Parsons, Jason G.; Alcoutlabi, Mataz (October 2021, Journal of Applied Polymer Science)

   Abstract Copper nanoparticles (CuNPs) embedded in polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) and polyethylene oxide (PEO) fiber‐matrices were prepared through centrifugal spinning of PVP/ethanol and PEO/aqueous solutions, respectively. The prime focus of the current study is to investigate the antibacterial activity of composite fibers againstEscherichia coli(E. coli) andBacillus cereus(B. cereus) bacteria. During the fiber formation, the centrifugal spinning parameters such as spinneret rotational speed, spinneret to collector distance, and relative humidity were carefully chosen to obtain long and continuous fibers. The structural and morphological analyses of both composite fibers were investigated using scanning electron microscopy, X‐ray diffraction, energy‐dispersive X‐ray spectroscopy, and thermogravimetric analysis. In the antibacterial test, PVP/Cu and PEO/Cu composite fibrous membranes exhibited inhibition efficiency of 99.98% and 99.99% againstE. coliandB. cereusbacteria, respectively. Basically, CuNPs were well embedded in the fibrous membrane at the nanoscale level, which facilitated the inhibition of bacterial functions through the inactivation of the chemical structure of the cells. Such an effective antibacterial agent obtained from forcespun composite fibers could be promising candidates for biomedical applications. 

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4. Highly Efficient Antimicrobial Activity of CuxFeyOz Nanoparticles against Important Human Pathogens

   https://doi.org/10.3390/nano10112294  

   Zhu, Lu; Pearson, David W.; Benoit, Stéphane L.; Xie, Jing; Pant, Jitendra; Yang, Yanjun; Mondal, Arnab; Handa, Hitesh; Howe, Jane Y.; Hung, Yen-Con; et al (November 2020, Nanomaterials)

   null (Ed.)

   The development of innovative antimicrobial materials is crucial in thwarting infectious diseases caused by microbes, as drug-resistant pathogens are increasing in both number and capacity to detoxify the antimicrobial drugs used today. An ideal antimicrobial material should inhibit a wide variety of bacteria in a short period of time, be less or not toxic to normal cells, and the fabrication or synthesis process should be cheap and easy. We report a one-step microwave-assisted hydrothermal synthesis of mixed composite CuxFeyOz (Fe2O3/Cu2O/CuO/CuFe2O) nanoparticles (NPs) as an excellent antimicrobial material. The 1 mg/mL CuxFeyOz NPs with the composition 36% CuFeO2, 28% Cu2O and 36% Fe2O3 have a general antimicrobial activity greater than 5 log reduction within 4 h against nine important human pathogenic bacteria (including drug-resistant bacteria as well as Gram-positive and Gram-negative strains). For example, they induced a >9 log reduction in Escherichia coli B viability after 15 min of incubation, and an ~8 log reduction in multidrug-resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae after 4 h incubation. Cytotoxicity tests against mouse fibroblast cells showed about 74% viability when exposed to 1 mg/mL CuxFeyOz NPs for 24 h, compared to the 20% viability for 1 mg/mL pure Cu2O NPs synthesized by the same method. These results show that the CuxFeyOz composite NPs are a highly efficient, low-toxicity and cheap antimicrobial material that has promising potential for applications in medical and food safety. 

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5. Surfaces with antifouling-antimicrobial dual function via immobilization of lysozyme on zwitterionic polymer thin films

   https://doi.org/10.1039/D1TB02597J  

   Khlyustova, Alexandra; Kirsch, Mia; Ma, Xiaojing; Cheng, Yifan; Yang, Rong (April 2022, Journal of Materials Chemistry B)

   Due to the emergence of wide-spread infectious diseases, there is a heightened need for antimicrobial and/or antifouling coatings that can be used to prevent infection and transmission in a variety of applications, ranging from healthcare devices to public facilities. While antimicrobial coatings kill pathogenic bacteria upon contact with the surface, the antimicrobial function alone often lacks long-term effectiveness due to the accumulation of dead cells and their debris on the surface, thus reducing the performance of the coating over time. Therefore, it is desirable to develop coatings with the dual functions of antimicrobial efficacy and fouling resistance, in which antifouling coatings provide the added benefit of preventing the adhesion of dead cells and debris. Leveraging the outstanding antifouling properties of zwitterionic coatings, we synthesized copolymers with this antimicrobial-antifouling dual function by immobilizing lysozyme, a common antimicrobial enzyme, to the surface of a pyridinium-based zwitterionic copolymer. Specifically, poly(4-vinylpyridine- co -pentaflurophenyl methacrylate- co -divinyl benzene) [P(4VP-PFPMA-DVB)] thin films were synthesized by an all-dry vapor deposition technique, initiated Chemical Vapor Deposition, and derivatized using 1,3-propane sultone to obtain sulfobetaine moieties. Lysozyme, known to hydrolyze polysaccharides in the cell wall of Gram-positive bacteria, was immobilized by forming amide bonds with the copolymer coating via nucleophilic substitution of the pentafluorophenyl group. The antifouling and antibacterial performance of the novel lysozyme-zwitterionic coating was tested against Gram-positive Bacillus subtilis and Gram-negative Pseudomonas aeruginosa . A reduction in surface adhesion of 87% was achieved for P. aeruginosa , and of 75% for B. subtilis , when compared to a common poly(vinyl chloride) surface. The lysozyme-zwitterionic coating also deactivated 67% of surface-attached Gram-positive bacteria, B. subtilis . This novel dual-function material can produce anti -infection surfaces for medical devices and surgical tools, personal care products, and surfaces in public facilities. 

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