Functionalised polyester surfaces to reduce bacterial adhesion Gianmarco Mallamaci 1 , Benedetta Brugnoli 1 , Alessia Mariano 2 , Anna Scotto d’Abusco 2 , Antonella Piozzi 1 , Valerio Di Lisio 3 , Elisa Sturabotti 1 , Sara Alfano 1 , Iolanda Francolini 1* 1 Dept. of Chemistry and 2 Dept. of Biochemical Sciences, Sapienza University of Rome, Italy, 3 Donostia International Physics Center, Paseo Manuel de Lardizabal, Spain Polylactic acid (PLA), polyhydroxybutyrate (PHB), or polyhydroxybutyrate-co-valerate (PHB-HV) 2D-matrices were surface functionalised by aminolysis by using the polyfunctional amines 1,6-hexamethylendiamine (HDA), tetraethylenepentamine (TEPA), and polyallylamine hydrochloride (PAH), to design materials with antifouling properties towards bacteria 1 . To add a sufficient number of amine groups while maintaining the structural characteristics of the films, the experimental approaches were carefully examined. By changing the type of polyfunctional amine used for aminolysis, it was possible to increase surface density of amino groups, thus potentiating the antifouling properties of the films. PHB and PHB-HV matrices were more sensitive to aminolysis compared to PLA, and the highest amino group density was achieved in surfaces etched with PAH. A decrease in the contact angle from ca. 85° to ca. 70° was revealed for polymers functionalised with HDA and TEPA and a drastic reduction in Staphylococcus epidermidis adhesion was observed for PHB-HV functionalised with the polymeric amine PAH. Cationic polymer surfaces were supposed to act upon contact with bacteria. Overall, our findings highlight how polymer surface functionalisation 2 with amino groups may successfully counteract microbial adhesion without the use of drugs.
Figure 1. Aminolysis reaction of PLA (A), PHB (B) and PHB-HV (C) with the polymeric amine PAH References
1. Mallamaci, G.; Brugnoli, B.; Mariano, A.; d’Abusco, A. S.; Piozzi, A.; Di Lisio, V.; Sturabotti, E.; Alfano, S.; Francolini, I. Surface Modification of Polyester Films with Polyfunctional Amines: Effect on Bacterial Biofilm Formation. Surf. Interfaces 2023 , 39 , 102924. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.surfin.2023.102924. 2. Ghilini, F.; Pissinis, D. E.; Mi án, A.; Schilardi, P. L.; Diaz, C. How Functionalized Surfaces Can Inhibit Bacterial Adhesion and Viability. ACS Biomater. Sci. Eng. 2019 , 5 (10), 4920–4936. https://doi.org/10.1021/acsbiomaterials.9b00849.
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