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Preparation and Friction Force Microscopy Measurements of Immiscible, Opposing Polymer Brushes
Published on: December 24, 2014
Capture of microbial cells on brush-type polymeric materials bearing different functional groups
1Department of Chemistry and Biotechnology, Faculty of Engineering, The University of Tokyo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo Japan 113.
Biotechnology and Bioengineering
|March 5, 1997
Summary
A novel polymeric material effectively captures Staphylococcus aureus using epoxy groups. However, introducing ethanolamine groups reduced the capture of both S. aureus and E. coli, indicating the importance of epoxy group presence for microbial cell capture.
Area of Science:
- Biomaterials Engineering
- Polymer Chemistry
- Microbiology
Background:
- Developing effective microbial cell-capturing materials is crucial for various applications, including water purification and medical devices.
- Radiation-induced grafting offers a versatile method for surface modification of polymeric materials.
Purpose of the Study:
- To synthesize and characterize a brush-type microbial-cell-capturing polymeric material.
- To investigate the effect of different functional groups on the material's ability to capture bacterial cells, specifically Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli.
Main Methods:
- Radiation-induced grafting of glycidyl-methacrylate (GMA) onto a polyethylene-based fiber.
- Modification of epoxy groups with diethylamine (DEA) and subsequent hydrophilization with ethanolamine (EA).
- Evaluation of bacterial cell-capturing abilities of the modified membranes using Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli.
Main Results:
- The DEA membrane with coexisting epoxy (EO) groups (DEA-EO membrane) showed significant S. aureus-cell-capturing ability with a rate constant of 1.82 x 10(-6) m/s.
- The DEA membrane with coexisting ethanolamine (EA) groups (DEA-EA membrane) exhibited reduced capturing abilities for both S. aureus and E. coli.
- The density of DEA groups influenced the capturing performance, with an optimal density of 2.7 mol/kg for the DEA-EO membrane.
Conclusions:
- The presence of epoxy groups in the modified polymeric material is essential for effective Staphylococcus aureus capture.
- Hydrophilization of the epoxy groups with ethanolamine diminishes the material's capacity to capture both Gram-positive (S. aureus) and Gram-negative (E. coli) bacteria.
- This study highlights the potential of tailored functionalization in designing targeted microbial capture materials.
