Abstract
This study reports the fabrication of nanostructured coatings based on magnetite, polyethyleneglycol, and biologically active molecule (polymyxin B-PM) for producing biofilm-resistant surfaces (voice prosthesis). Magnetite nanoparticles (MNPs) have been synthesized and functionalized using a co-precipitation method and were further deposited into thin coatings using the matrix-assisted pulsed laser evaporation (MAPLE) technique. The obtained nanoparticles and coatings were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), thermogravimetric analysis with differential scanning calorimetry (TGA-DSC), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy with selected area electron diffraction (TEM-SAED), Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), and infrared microscopy (IRM). Their antibiofilm activity was tested against relevant Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa bacterial strains. The Fe3O4@PEG/PM surface of modified voice prosthesis sections reduced the number of CFU/mL up to four orders of magnitude in the case of S. aureus biofilm. A more significant inhibitory effect is noticed in the case of P. aeruginosa up to five folds. These results highlight the importance of new Fe3O4@PEG/PM in the biomedical field.
Highlights
Antibiotics have undoubtedly revolutionized medicine in the past century, being used in treating and preventing the infections produced by bacterial strains [1,2,3,4]
Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM) and SAED analyses were used to retrieve information regarding the structure of Magnetite nanoparticles (MNPs)
In the case of P. aeruginosa tests (Figure 10), the control CFU/mL values were similar for 24 and 48 h, namely ~1011 CFU/mL. These results demonstrate the high affinity of P. aeruginosa strains for colonizing the surfaces of medical devices, a reason for which this opportunistic pathogen is associated with numerous nosocomial, difficult-to-treat infections
Summary
Antibiotics have undoubtedly revolutionized medicine in the past century, being used in treating and preventing the infections produced by bacterial strains [1,2,3,4]. In time, numerous such antimicrobials have been implemented for suppressing and killing pathogens, significantly reducing the occurrence of infectious diseases [4]. One of the main reasons behind the ineffectiveness of antibiotic treatments is represented by the formation of biofilms [6] In these multicellular, surface-associated communities of microbes, bacteria are embedded within a matrix of extracellular polymeric substances (EPS) containing polysaccharides, extracellular DNA, and proteins [15,16,17]. It was noted that the surface of biomaterials implanted into the human organism are prone to adherence and colonization with microorganisms, leading to the development of biofilms that protect the underlying bacteria from the host’s defense system and antibacterial substances [18,19,20,21]
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