Abstract
Microbial contamination remains a significant issue for many industrial, commercial, and medical applications. For instance, microbial surface contamination is detrimental to numerous aspects of food production, infection transfer, and even marine applications. As such, intense scientific interest has focused on improving the antimicrobial properties of surface coatings via both chemical and physical routes. However, there is a lack of synthetic coatings that possess long-term microbiocidal performance. In this study, silver nanoparticle cluster coatings were developed on copper surfaces via an ion-exchange and reduction reaction, followed by a silanization step. The durability of the microbiocidal activity for these develped surfaces was tested against pathogenic bacterial and fungal species, specifically Escherichia coli O157:H7 and Candida auris, over periods of 1- and 7-days. It was observed that more than 90% of E. coli and C. auris were found to be non-viable following the extended exposure times. This facile material fabrication presents as a new surface design for the production of durable microbicidal coatings which can be applied to numerous applications.
Highlights
The surface colonization of bacteria and fungi on abiotic substrates is commonly referred to as a biofilm formation and significantly contributes to healthcare and industrial concerns [1,2]
A 2018 outbreak of the E. coli strain O157:H7 was reported across 36 states, infecting 210 people [6]
A facile route was used to fabricate Ag NPs coatings on copper (Cu) surfaces, in which Ag NPs would assemble into high-aspect-ratio clusters. These surfaces were assessed for their long-term microbiocidal activity against both Shiga toxin-producing E. coli and C. auris cells
Summary
The surface colonization of bacteria and fungi on abiotic substrates is commonly referred to as a biofilm formation and significantly contributes to healthcare and industrial concerns [1,2] This issue is further impacted by the current rise in antibiotic resistance amongst microbial species, which has caused a significant increase in persistent infections and related deaths [3]. A facile route was used to fabricate Ag NPs coatings on copper (Cu) surfaces, in which Ag NPs would assemble into high-aspect-ratio clusters These surfaces were assessed for their long-term microbiocidal activity against both Shiga toxin-producing E. coli and C. auris cells. The fabricated surfaces present a new direction in the design of durable microbicidal surface coatings
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