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Electroenhanced Antimicrobial Coating Based on Conjugated Polymers with Covalently Coupled Silver Nanoparticles Prevents Staphylococcus aureus Biofilm Formation
Author(s) -
GomezCarretero Salvador,
Nybom Rolf,
RichterDahlfors Agneta
Publication year - 2017
Publication title -
advanced healthcare materials
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.288
H-Index - 90
eISSN - 2192-2659
pISSN - 2192-2640
DOI - 10.1002/adhm.201700435
Subject(s) - materials science , biofilm , silver nanoparticle , covalent bond , coating , surface plasmon resonance , antimicrobial , nanotechnology , pedot:pss , polymer , nanoparticle , staphylococcus aureus , conjugated system , chemical engineering , layer (electronics) , chemistry , composite material , organic chemistry , bacteria , engineering , biology , genetics
The incidence of hospital‐acquired infections is to a large extent due to device‐associated infections. Bacterial attachment and biofilm formation on surfaces of medical devices often act as seeding points of infection. To prevent such infections, coatings based on silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) are often applied, however with varying clinical success. Here, the traditional AgNP‐based antibacterial technology is reimagined, now forming the base for an electroenhanced antimicrobial coating. To integrate AgNPs in an electrically conducting polymer layer, a simple, yet effective chemical strategy based on poly(hydroxymethyl 3,4‐ethylenedioxythiophene):polystyrene sulfonate (PEDOT‐MeOH:PSS) and (3‐aminopropyl)triethoxysilane is designed. The resultant PEDOT‐MeOH:PSS–AgNP composite presents a consistent coating of covalently linked AgNPs, as shown by scanning electron microscopy and surface plasmon resonance analysis. The efficacy of the coatings, with and without electrical addressing, is then tested against Staphylococcus aureus , a major colonizer of medical implants. Using custom‐designed culturing devices, a nearly complete prevention of biofilm growth is obtained in AgNP composite devices addressed with a square wave voltage input. It is concluded that this electroenhancement of the bactericidal effect of the coupled AgNPs offers a novel, efficient solution against biofilm colonization of medical implants.