Antimicrobial and Antibiofilm N-acetyl-L-cysteine Grafted Siloxane Polymers with Potential for Use in Water Systems

• Published in: International journal of molecular sciences Vol. 20; no. 8; p. 2011
• Main Authors: Kregiel, Dorota, Rygala, Anna, Kolesinska, Beata, Nowacka, Maria, Herc, Agata S, Kowalewska, Anna
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Switzerland MDPI AG 24.04.2019; MDPI
• Subjects: Acetylcysteine; Acetylcysteine - chemistry; Acetylcysteine - pharmacology; Anti-Bacterial Agents - chemistry; Anti-Bacterial Agents - pharmacology; Antibiotics; Antimicrobial agents; Bacteria; Bacteria - drug effects; Bacterial Adhesion - drug effects; Bacterial corrosion; biofilm; Biofilms; Biofilms - drug effects; Cell adhesion & migration; Contamination; Drinking water; Drinking Water - microbiology; Gram-negative bacteria; N-acetyl-L-cysteine; Nanoparticles; Pathogens; Polymers; polysiloxanes; polysilsesquioxanes; Siloxanes - chemistry; Siloxanes - pharmacology; Silver; Streptococcus infections; Water Purification; polysilsesquioxanes; bacteria; polysiloxanes; biofilm; N-acetyl-L-cysteine
• ISSN: 1422-0067; 1661-6596; 1422-0067
• DOI: 10.3390/ijms20082011

Antibiofilm strategies may be based on the prevention of initial bacterial adhesion, the inhibition of biofilm maturation or biofilm eradication. N-acetyl-L-cysteine (NAC), widely used in medical treatments, offers an interesting approach to biofilm destruction. However, many Eubacteria strains are able to enzymatically decompose the NAC molecule. This is the first report on the action of two hybrid materials, NAC-Si-1 and NAC-Si-2, against bacteria isolated from a water environment: , , , , and . The NAC was grafted onto functional siloxane polymers to reduce its availability to bacterial enzymes. The results confirm the bioactivity of NAC. However, the final effect of its action was environment- and strain-dependent. Moreover, all the tested bacterial strains showed the ability to degrade NAC by various metabolic routes. The NAC polymers were less effective bacterial inhibitors than NAC, but more effective at eradicating mature bacterial biofilms.