Layered double hydroxide (LDH) nanocontainers, suitable as carriers for anionic drugs, were intercalated with Pravastatin drug using magnesium–aluminum and zinc–aluminum in a MII/Al molar ratio equal 2 and different Al3+/Pravastatin molar ratios. Postsynthesis treatments were used in order to increase the materials crystallinity. Hybrid materials were characterized by a set of physical chemical techniques: chemical elemental analysis, X-ray diffraction (XRD), mass coupled thermal analyses, vibrational infrared and Raman spectroscopies, and solid-state 13C nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR). Results were interpreted in light of computational density functional theory (DFT) calculations performed for Sodium Pravastatin in order to assign the data obtained for the LDH intercalated materials. XRD peaks of LDH-Pravastatin material and the one-dimensional (1D) electron density map pointed out to a bilayer arrangement of Pravastatin in the interlayer region, where its associated carboxylate and vicinal hydroxyl groups are close to the positive LDH. The structural organization observed for the stacked assembly containing the unsymmetrical and bulky monoanion Pravastatin and LDH seems to be promoted by a self-assembling process, in which local interactions are maximized and chloride ion cointercalation is required. It is observed a high similarity among vibrational and 13C NMR spectra of Na-Pravastatin and LDH-Pravastatin materials. Those features indicate that the intercalation preserves the drug structural integrity. Spectroscopic techniques corroborate the nature of the guest species and their arrangement between the inorganic layers. Changes related to carboxylate, alcohol, and olefinic moieties are observed in both vibrational Raman and 13C NMR spectra after the drug intercalation. Thus, Pravastatin ions are forced to be arranged as head to tail through intermolecular hydrogen bonding between adjacent organic species. The thermal decomposition profile of the hybrid samples is distinct of that one observed for Na-Pravastatin salt, however, with no visible increase in the thermal behavior when the organic anion is sequestrated within LDH gap.

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Competition and cooperation phenomena occur within highly interactive biofilm communities and several non-biocides molecules produced by microorganisms have been described as impairing biofilm formation. In this study, we investigated the anti-biofilm capacities of an ubiquitous and biofilm producing bacterium, Klebsiella pneumoniae. Cell-free supernatant from K. pneumoniae planktonic cultures showed anti-biofilm effects on most Gram positive bacteria tested but also encompassed some Gram negative bacilli. The anti-biofilm non-bactericidal activity was further investigated on Staphylococcus epidermidis, by determining the biofilm biomass, microscopic observations and agglutination measurement through a magnetic bead-mediated agglutination test. Cell-free extracts from K. pneumoniae biofilm (supernatant and acellular matrix) also showed an influence, although to a lesser extend. Chemical analyses indicated that the active molecule was a high molecular weight polysaccharide composed of five monosaccharides: galactose, glucose, rhamnose, glucuronic acid and glucosamine and the main following sugar linkage residues [→2)-α-l-Rhap-(1→]; [→4)-α-l-Rhap-(1→]; [α-d-Galp-(1→]; [→2,3)-α-d-Galp-(1→]; [→3)-β-d-Galp-(1→] and, [→4)-β-d-GlcAp-(1→]. Characterization of this molecule indicated that this component was more likely capsular polysaccharide (CPS) and precoating of abiotic surfaces with CPS extracts from different serotypes impaired the bacteria-surface interactions. Thus the CPS of Klebsiella would exhibit a pleiotropic activity during biofilm formation, both stimulating the initial adhesion and maturation steps as previously described, but also repelling potential competitors.