Engineering and Application Perspectives on Designing an Antimicrobial Surface

Abstract

Infections, contaminations, and biofouling resulting from micro- and/or macro-organisms remained a prominent threat to the public health, food industry, and aqua-/marine-related applications. Considering environmental and drug resistance concerns as well as insufficient efficacy on biofilms associated with conventional disinfecting reagents, developing an antimicrobial surface potentially improved antimicrobial performance by directly working on the microbes surrounding the surface area. Here we provide an engineering perspective on the logic of choosing materials and strategies for designing antimicrobial surfaces, as well as an application perspective on their potential impacts. In particular, we analyze and discuss requirements and expectations for specific applications and provide insights on potential misconnection between the antimicrobial solution and its targeted applications. Given the high translational barrier for antimicrobial surfaces, future research would benefit from a comprehensive understanding of working mechanisms for potential materials/strategies, and challenges/requirements for a targeted application.

Keywords: antimicrobial; biocide; coating; interface; microbe-resistance.

Figure 1.

Design strategies for antimicrobial surface.

Figure 2.

Surface microbial resistance of superdurable PCBAA (poly-3-((3-acrylamidopropyl) dimethylammonio)propanoate)) coating for long term performance. The SEM images exhibited the microbial adhesion on the PU (polyurethane), superglue and PCBAA coating surface respectively after 30 days of stationary with different types of microbes. Reproduced with permission from ref . Copyright 2017, WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Figure 3.

Releasable biocides within microbe-resistance surface for coordinated antimicrobial functions. The Ag NPs (green balls) were deposited in the pDA layer (blue) in situ as the releasable biocide before the pDA surface was further functionalized and linked covalently to antifouling materials such as the SBAA, SBMA or PEGMA (red) to provide the microbe-resistance functions. Reproduced with permission from ref . Copyright 2016, American Chemical Society.

Figure 4.

The immobilized biocidal N-halamine film integrated with the microbe-resistance PSBMA brush for coordinated antimicrobial application. The HAF (immobilized rechargeable biocide) film was prepared with the modification of BPTCD (photoinitiator) before the zwitterionic polymers (green line, PSBMA, microbe-resistance coating) were grafted on the surface. The chlorine (yellow balls) on the HAF would be consumed during the contact biocidal process while the PSBMA resisted the adhesion of the bacteria/debris. The biocidal chlorine could be recharged by immersing the surface in a household bleach solution. Reproduced with permission from ref . Copyright 2019, American Chemical Society.