Highly Efficient F, Cu Doped TiO2 Anti-bacterial Visible Light Active Photocatalytic Coatings to Combat Hospital-Acquired Infections

Bacterial infections are a major threat to the health of patients in healthcare facilities including hospitals. One of the major causes of patient morbidity is infection with Staphylococcus aureus. One of the the most dominant nosocomial bacteria, Methicillin Resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) have been reported to survive on hospital surfaces (e.g. privacy window glasses) for up to 5 months. None of the current anti-bacterial technology is efficient in eliminating Staphylococcus aureus. A novel transparent, immobilised and superhydrophilic coating of titanium dioxide, co-doped with fluorine and copper has been prepared on float glass substrates. Antibacterial activity has demonstrated (by using Staphylococcus aureus), resulting from a combination of visible light activated (VLA) photocatalysis and copper ion toxicity. Co-doping with copper and fluorine has been shown to improve the performance of the coating, relative to a purely fluorine-doped VLA photocatalyst. Reductions in bacterial population of log10 = 4.2 under visible light irradiation and log10 = 1.8 in darkness have been achieved, compared with log10 = 1.8 under visible light irradiation and no activity, for a purely fluorine-doped titania. Generation of reactive oxygen species from the photocatalytic coatings is the major factor that significantly reduces the bacterial growth on the glass surfaces

Influence of selenium supplementation on fatty acids profile and biological activity of four edible amaranth sprouts as new kind of functional food

Suitability assessment of amaranth sprouts as a new functional food was carried out. The optimisation of sprouting process and the influence of selenium supplementation, in doses 10, 15, and 30 mg/l of selenium as sodium selenite, on amaranth growth and fatty acid profile were examined. Methods such as FRAP, DPPH, polyphenols content and GPX activity were applied to characterize antioxidant poten- tial of seeds and sprouts of four different edible amaranth genera. E. coli, S. aureus, C. albicans were used to evaluate amaranth sprouts antimicrobial properties. Interaction be- tween amaranth sprouts and biological systems was assessed by analysing antibacterial and antifungal properties with a disc diffusion test. The studies proved amaranth sprouts to be potentially attractive as functional food. As confirmed by all the data amaranth sprouts are suitable as a moderate selenium accumulator and are rich in essential fatty acids, especially linoleic and alpha-linolenic acids, which are precursors of long chain polyunsaturated fatty acids. Thus, it opens dietary opportunities for amaranth sprouts. They can also serve as a moderate source of antioxidant compounds. Nevertheless, the experiments revealed neither antibacterial, nor antifungal properties of sprouts. In general, amaranth sprouts biological activity under evaluation has failed to prove to be significantly impacted by selenium fertilization

Antimicrobial Properties of Vertically Aligned Nano-Tubular Copper

In this work, the antimicrobial properties of vertically aligned nano-tubular Cu arrays (NT-Cu) fabricated via a template-based electrodeposition approach were investigated. The NT-Cu display good bactericidal activity against S.aureus and bacteriostatic properties against E.coli, S.sonnei, S.enterica and C.albicans. In contrast, Cu-foil electrodeposited from the same solution shows low biological activity against the same microorganisms. The antimicrobial activity of NT-Cu depends on both the type of microorganism and exposure time. After 6 hours of exposure, over 99.99% (log red = 4.43) of S.aureus population was inactivated, whereas, for E.coli, S.sonnei, S.enterica and C.albicans it was 97.8, 94.2, 89.9, and 90.3%, respectively

3D imaging of cell interactions with electrospun PLGA nanofiber membranes for bone regeneration

We acknowledge funding from the QMUL Pump-Priming Research Funding for Cross-Faculty Initiatives 2011-12 (EPSRC

Biodegradable poly(ester urethane)urea scaffolds for tissue engineering: interaction with osteoblast-like MG-63 cells

Porous three-dimensional scaffolds with potential for application as cancellous bone graft substitutes were prepared from aliphatic segmented poly(ester urethane) urea using the phase-inverse technique. Proton nuclear magnetic resonance, size-exclusion chromatography, electron spectroscopy for chemical analysis, secondary ion mass spectrometry, infrared spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy, differential scanning calorimetry, computed tomography and mechanical tests were carried out, to characterize the scaffolds’ physicochemical properties. Human osteosarcoma MG-63 cells were seeded into the scaffolds for 1, 2, 3 and 4 weeks to evaluate their potential to support attachment, growth and proliferation of osteogenic cells. The scaffold–cell interaction was assessed by analysis of DNA content, total protein amount, alkaline phosphatase activity and WST-1 assay. The scaffolds supported cell attachment, growth and proliferation over the whole culture period of 4 weeks (DNA, total protein amount). There was, however, a reduction in the WST-1 assay values at 4 weeks, which might suggest a reduction in the rate of cell proliferation at this time

Highly efficient F, Cu doped TiO2 anti-bacterial visible light active photocatalytic coatings to combat hospital-acquired infections

Bacterial infections are a major threat to the health of patients in healthcare facilities including\ud hospitals. One of the major causes of patient morbidity is infection with Staphylococcus aureus. One\ud of the the most dominant nosocomial bacteria, Methicillin Resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA)\ud have been reported to survive on hospital surfaces (e.g. privacy window glasses) for up to 5 months.\ud None of the current anti-bacterial technology is efficient in eliminating Staphylococcus aureus. A novel\ud transparent, immobilised and superhydrophilic coating of titanium dioxide, co-doped with fluorine and\ud copper has been prepared on float glass substrates. Antibacterial activity has demonstrated (by using\ud Staphylococcus aureus), resulting from a combination of visible light activated (VLA) photocatalysis and\ud copper ion toxicity. Co-doping with copper and fluorine has been shown to improve the performance of\ud the coating, relative to a purely fluorine-doped VLA photocatalyst. Reductions in bacterial population of\ud log10 = 4.2 under visible light irradiation and log10 = 1.8 in darkness have been achieved, compared with\ud log10 = 1.8 under visible light irradiation and no activity, for a purely fluorine-doped titania. Generation\ud of reactive oxygen species from the photocatalytic coatings is the major factor that significantly reduces\ud the bacterial growth on the glass surfaces