Acute Toxicity and Bactericidal Property of Tetrakis Hydroxymethyl Phosphonium Sulfate in Japanese Eel

[ Objective] To understand the toxicity and sterilization effects of the tetrakis hydroxmethyl phosphonium sulfate （THPS） as a novel quatemary phosphonium biocide. [ Method] Under hydrostatic conditions, the acute toxicity and bactericidal property of THPS on the Fiexibacter coiumnaris （ F. columnaris） were observed in Japanese eel. The semi-lethal concentration （LCso）, safe concentration （Sc）, minimum inhibitory concentration （MIC）, minimum bactericidal concentration （MBC） and the sterilization rate of THPS were calculated, respectively. [ Result ] The LCso of THPS at 24, 48 and 96 h were 11.9, 9.9 and 9.1 mg/L, respectively. The Sc of THPS at 24 h was 2.1 mg/L; the MIC and MBC of THPS to the F. columnaris were 0.36 and 0.72 mg/L; and the sterilization rate was 100% at a concentration of 0.7 mg/L at 12 h. The sterilization rate of THPS had no great change with pH values varying from 5.5 to 9.5. [ Condusion] The THPS is a novel, safe and effective biocide for prevention and treatment of bacterial diseases of Japanese eel.

Micro/nano-structured TiO2 surface with dual-functional antibacterial effects for biomedical applications

Implant-associated infections are generally difficult to cure owing to the bacterial antibiotic resistance which is attributed to the widespread usage of antibiotics.Given the global threat and increasing influence of antibiotic resistance,there is an urgent demand to explore novel antibacterial strategies other than using antibiotics.Recently,using a certain surface topography to provide a more persistent antibacterial solution attracts more and more attention.However,the clinical application of biomimetic nano-pillar array is not satisfactory,mainly because its antibacterial ability against Gram-positive strain is not good enough.Thus,the pillar array should be equipped with other antibacterial agents to fulfill the bacteriostatic and bactericidal requirements of clinical application.Here,we designed a novel model substrate which was a combination of periodic micro/nano-pillar array and TiO2 for basically understanding the topographical bacteriostatic effects of periodic micro/nano-pillar array and the photocatalytic bactericidal activity of TiO2.Such innovation may potentially exert the synergistic effects by integrating the persistent topographical antibacterial activity and the non-invasive X-ray induced photocatalytic antibacterial property of TiO2 to combat against antibiotic-resistant implant-associated infections.First,to separately verify the topographical antibacterial activity of TiO2 periodic micro/nano-pillar array,we systematically investigated its effects on bacterial adhesion,growth,proliferation,and viability in the dark without involving the photocatalysis of TiO2.The pillar array with sub-micron motif size can significantly inhibit the adhesion,growth,and proliferation of Staphylococcus aureus(S.aureus)and Escherichia coli(E.coli).Such antibacterial ability is mainly attributed to a spatial confinement size-effect and limited contact area availability generated by the special topography of pillar array.Moreover,the pillar array is not lethal to S.aureus and E.coli in 24 h.Then,the X-ray induced photocatalytic antibacterial property of TiO2 periodic micro/nano-pillar array in vitro and in vivo will be systematically studied in a future work.This study could shed light on the direction of surface topography design for future medical implants to combat against antibiotic-resistant implant-associated infections without using antibiotics.

Dual-function antibacterial surfaces to resist and kill bacteria:Painting a picture with two brushes simultaneously

Attachment of bacteria and subsequent formation of biofilms on material surfaces lead to serious consequences including infection,contamination and biofouling,posing a prominent threat to human health and causing problems in many industries.Therefore,it is highly desirable to endow the surfaces with antibacterial properties.Traditional antibacterial surfaces are designed via either bacteria-resisting strategy to prevent the initial adhesion of bacteria or bacteria-killing strategy to eradicate any bacteria that attach to the surface.However,these single-function surfaces have their inherent shortcomings and cannot realize long-term efficacy against bacteria.In recent years,various dual-function antibacterial surfaces with both bacteria-resisting and bacteria-killing properties together have been developed,showing better performance for combating surface-attached bacteria and preventing formation of biofilms.In this review,we summarize the recent development of these dual-function antibacterial surfaces.We focus on the design principles and fabrication strategies of such surfaces and highlight the representative examples,which are categorized specifically into two types according to the anti-adhesive and bactericidal properties are simultaneous or switchable.A brief perspective is finally presented on current challenges and future research directions.