Polymer-immobilized photosensitizers for continuous eradication of bacteria

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Abstract

The photosensitizers Rose Bengal (RB) and methylene blue (MB), when immobilized in polystyrene, were found to exhibit high antibacterial activity in a continuous regime. The photosensitizers were immobilized by dissolution in chloroform, together with polystyrene, with further evaporation of the solvent, yielding thin polymeric films. Shallow reservoirs, bottom-covered with these films, were used for constructing continuous-flow photoreactors for the eradication of Gram-positive Staphylococcus aureus, Gram-negative Escherichia coli and wastewater bacteria under illumination with visible white light using a luminescent lamp at a 1.8 mW·cm-2 fluence rate. The bacterial concentration decreased by two to five orders of magnitude in separate reactors with either immobilized RB or MB, as well as in three reactors connected in series, which contained one of the photosensitizers. Bacterial eradication reached more than five orders of magnitude in two reactors connected in series, where the first reactor contained immobilized RB and the second contained immobilized MB.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)14984-14996
Number of pages13
JournalInternational Journal of Molecular Sciences
Volume15
Issue number9
DOIs
StatePublished - 25 Aug 2014

Keywords

  • Antibacterial activity
  • Immobilization
  • Methylene blue
  • Photodynamic antimicrobial chemotherapy
  • Photosensitizers
  • Polystyrene
  • Rose bengal

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