Pathogenic bacteria are a major concern and finding ways to control them is essential in developing products in various areas from basic household maintenance, hospital settings to combating intentional release by terrorists. In the last few years, we have successfully explored water soluble, conjugated polyelectrolytes (CPEs) and oligomers (OPEs) with pendant quaternary ammonium groups as light activated biocides. Their remarkable capability to act as light activated biocides is attributed both to their ability to interact with bacterial membrane and to sensitize singlet oxygen which is lethal to bacteria.Importantly,  as opposed to the silver antimicrobials, CPEs and OPEs show low toxicity to mammalian cells and human skin.  To probe the utility of the antimicrobial CPEs and OPEs,we have devised strategies to incorporate them into fiber samples such as cotton, filter paper, fabric pieces and glass substrates. The modified surfaces are characterized by several analytical techniques and found to posses efficient biocidal properties.  This work is highlighted in this presentation.

Materials incorporating antimicrobial polymers and oligomers: Design, characterization, and their efficacy against microbial growth

245th National Meeting (2013)

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