Challenges to the design and testing of antimicrobial nanostructured surfaces
Denver Linklater A B C and Elena P. Ivanova A B *A School of Science, STEM College, RMIT University, Melbourne Vic. 3000, Australia.
B ARC Hub for Australian Steel Manufacturing, Wollongong, NSW, Australia.
C Department of Biomedical Engineering, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, Vic. 3010, Australia.
Dr Denver Linklater is a McKenzie Postdoctoral Fellow in Biomedical Engineering at The University of Melbourne’s Faculty of Engineering and Information Technology. Her research interests are in design and synthesis of nanomaterials for novel anti-microbial technologies, stem cell culture and tissue re-generation. |
Elena Ivanova is a Distinguished Professor of RMIT University. Her research interests are in design and fabrication of biomimetic antimicrobial micro- and nano-structured surfaces, materials biointerfaces and immobilisation of biomolecules and microorganisms in micro- and nano-environments. |
Microbiology Australia 44(2) 79-82 https://doi.org/10.1071/MA23023
Submitted: 31 March 2023 Accepted: 8 May 2023 Published: 26 May 2023
© 2023 The Author(s) (or their employer(s)). Published by CSIRO Publishing on behalf of the ASM. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License (CC BY-NC-ND)
Abstract
Nanomaterials, specifically nano-topographies, have been explored for their antimicrobial activity toward bacteria, fungi and even viruses. A decade ago, we discovered that the nanopillar topography of insect wings such as cicadas, dragonflies and damselflies, were not repelling bacteria as previously surmised, but bacteria were attaching and consequently being killed. The nature of the bactericidal effect associated with nanostructured insect wings has been extended to include antimicrobial activity toward both to environmental and pathogenic fungi. Specifically, the antimicrobial nature is associated with the physical disintegration of attached microbes due to a mechanical stress imposed on the cell membrane, which stretches and breaks. This exciting new discovery implies that, if successfully replicated on the surface of biomaterials and implantable devices, systemic or local administration of antibiotics are no longer required to kill bacteria that attach on such surfaces.
Keywords: antibacterial surfaces, antimicrobial surfaces, biofilms, insect wing surfaces, printed antimicrobial surfaces.
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