TAILORING SURFACES FOR POTENTIAL INHIBITION OF BACTERIAL TRANSMISSION IN HEALTHCARE SETTINGS
Antibacterial coatings can potentially inhibit bacterial transmission from contaminated surfaces that contribute to healthcare-associated infections. Such coatings for use in healthcare settings should be durable with minimal cytotoxicity, and transparency would be essential for use with certain devices. In this thesis, surface-immobilized quaternized chitosan (QCS) transparent coating was first developed, and it showed significant antibacterial activity against Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa, two common hospital pathogens. Its bactericidal efficacy was further enhanced by incorporating copper. Firstly, silica nanoparticles were deposited on immobilized QCS to serve as reservoir of copper ions. Secondly, copper was complexed with ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid-grafted immobilized QCS. The coatings formulated by both strategies were transparent and highly bactericidal. The coating from the second strategy was especially effective against Pseudomonas aeruginosa and this phenomenon was further investigated. Finally, copper-incorporated polydopamine was investigated as a simple-to-fabricate antibacterial coating although it did not offer a high level of transparency.
antibacterial, coating, surface modification, chitosan, copper
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