Microbial adhesion and contamination on shared surfaces
can lead
to life-threatening infections with serious impacts on public health,
economy, and clinical practices. The traditional use of chemical disinfectants
for sanitization of surfaces, however, comes with its share of health
risks, such as hazardous effects on the eyes, skin, and respiratory
tract, carcinogenicity, as well as environmental toxicity. To address
this, we have developed a nonleaching quaternary small molecule (QSM)-based
sprayable coating which can be fabricated on a wide range of surfaces
such as nylon, polyethylene, surgical mask, paper, acrylate, and rubber
in a one-step, photocuring technique. This contact-active coating
killed pathogenic bacteria and fungi including drug-resistant strains
of Staphylococcus aureus and Candida albicans within 15–30 min of contact.
QSM coatings withstood multiple washes, highlighting their durability.
Interestingly, the coated surfaces exhibited rapid killing of pathogens,
leading to the prevention of their transmission upon contact. The
coating showed membrane disruption of bacterial cells in fluorescence
and electron microscopic investigations. Along with bacteria and fungi,
QSM-coated surfaces also showed the complete killing of high loads
of influenza (H1N1) and SARS-CoV-2 viruses within 30 min of exposure.
To our knowledge, this is the first report of a coating for multipurpose
materials applied in high-touch public places, hospital equipment,
and clinical consumables, rapidly killing drug-resistant bacteria,
fungi, influenza virus, and SARS-CoV-2