Because
of the broad-spectrum antimicrobial efficacy, silver-based
coatings have emerged as the popular choice to apply over frequently
touched surfaces for mitigating the spread of nosocomial infections.
Despite the advancements through various coating strategies, clustering
of the active component remains a bottleneck in achieving the molecular-scale
dispersion of silver. To circumvent this, the current study takes
advantage of the recent findings of quaternary ammonium moieties forming
molecular complexes with silver salts that differ from the simple
adduct between the individual components. Here we demonstrate the
quaternization of oxidatively cross-linked polydopamine coatings over
magnetite nanoparticles to anchor ionic silver at a molecular-scale
dispersion. The silver-derivatized materials exhibit remarkable broad-spectrum
antimicrobial properties against representative microbes like E. coli, S. aureus, and A. niger. Also, the study reveals the materials’ antibiofilm efficacy
(∼80–90%) against both bacteria. Further recyclability
studies have proven the sustained bactericidal properties up to five
cycles. The surface derivatization strategy has then been extended
to cover glass slips that have also shown the retention of the bactericidal
properties even after wiping 20 times with artificial sweat. The biocompatibility
of the materials has been ascertained with treated water against the
mouse fibroblast and human embryonic kidney cell lines. The current
study offers insights in developing coatings with molecular-scale
dispersion of ionic silver to achieve broad-spectrum antimicrobial
properties in an atom-economical and sustainable manner.
The rapid emergence of antimicrobial resistance warrants an antibiotic‐free approach to counter the bacterial threat in all possible applications of environmental and biomedical domains. In the context of smart wound dressing, besides imparting anti‐infective characteristics in a nonconventional fashion, it is also essential to imbibe multifunctional attributes like excessive biofluid drainage, easy‐to‐peel, optimal gas permeation, etc., for which appropriate material design is a prime requisite. In this work, poly(ε‐caprolactone) (PCL)− an FDA approved biocompatible polyester− is chosen for imparting antimicrobial properties by surface derivatization with molecularly‐dispersed ionic silver over quaternary ammonium moieties through a facile room temperate and organic solvent‐free approach. To render the other characteristics mentioned above, two different systems comprising PCL with varying porosity, namely, electrospun fibers and polyester‐coated cotton gauze, are developed. The dressing materials are thoroughly characterized and assessed for their structural, surface chemical, morphological, wettability, antibacterial, and peel strength properties as a function of surface derivatization steps. The bactericidal performance of the quaternary ammonium‐functionalized surfaces has enhanced manifold (≈7–10) after derivatizing with ionic silver. The in vivo efficacy study employing the dressing materials reveals ionic silver derivatized electrospun fibers as the most promising candidate, followed by cotton gauze‐coated with 5% PCL.
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