As evidenced by recent events, there is an alarming increase in the incidences of intractable bacterial infections, especially in hospital environments. Antibiotics such as penicillin, streptomycin or their derivatives have been the go-to therapeutics for countering various microbes. However, there is an increasing incidence of drug resistance against several classes of antibiotics, which necessitates novel approaches towards the development of new classes of antimicrobials. In addition to developing structural analogs of current antimicrobials, alternative approaches such as antimicrobial peptides, antibodies, and polymers are being pursued. Antimicrobial macromolecules such as the ones above have several advantages over small molecules but also have some critical drawbacks. We will describe our lab’s efforts in the design and development of polymers that are inspired by antimicrobial peptides (AMPs). AMP mimetic polyurethanes and poly(ester urethane)s were designed to present cationic and hydrophobic groups along the polymer backbone. The identity and composition of these groups dictate the antimicrobial activity of the polymers. However, increased antibacterial activity is coupled to an increase in mammalian cell toxicity and an optimum balance of these divergent properties need to be achieved. Detailed mechanistic studies aimed at understanding the mechanism of action and the structure-property correlations have given us insight into the structural determinants that provide antimicrobial efficacy while minimizing mammalian cell toxicity.

Design of antibacterial polyurethanes and poly(ester urethane)s: Balancing act of optimizing bacterial toxicity and mammalian cell compatibility

Macromolecular Chemistry: The Second Century

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ACS Spring 2020 National Meeting & Expo

The official archive and repository for all ACS Meetings & Expositions abstracts and select posters or presentations.