Electrodeposition of chitosan/gelatin/nanosilver: A new method for constructing biopolymer/nanoparticle composite films with conductivity and antibacterial activity

Electrodeposition of chitosan provides a controllable means to simultaneously assemble biological materials and nanoparticles for various applications. Here, we present a new method to construct biopolymer/nanoparticle composite films with conductivity and antibacterial activity by electrodeposition of chitosan/gelatin/nanosilver. Besides, this method can be employed to build biopolymer/nanoparticle composite hydrogels or coatings on various electrodes or conductive substrates. We initially use a simple approach to prepare the aqueous nanosilver that can be well-dispersed in water. Then, the codeposition mixture containing chitosan, gelatin and nanosilver is prepared, and it can be electrodeposited onto different electrodes or conductive substrates in response to imposed electrical signals. After electrodeposition, it is found that the deposited hydrogels and their dried films are smooth and homogeneous due to the elimination of H2 bubbles by addition of H2O2 in electrodeposition process. Importantly, the composite films are strong enough to completely and readily peel from the electrodes after they reacted with 1-ethyl-3-(3-dimethylaminopropyl)carbodiimide (EDC), which can build a type of biopolymer/nanoparticle film for further applications. Furthermore, the electrodeposition technique is able to offer controllable and convenient method to construct the composite films with diverse shapes. The composite films display improved conductivity and in vitro antibacterial activity against Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus, which may provide attractive applications in biomedical fields such as artificial muscles, skin biomaterials and neuroprosthetic implants.