Rapid Assay to Assess Bacterial Adhesion on Textiles

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Microbiology
• Textile Engineering

Background:

• Textile microbial colonization causes hygiene issues.
• Biocidal coatings pose environmental and health risks.
• Sustainable, biocide-free anti-adhesive coatings are needed.

Purpose of the Study:

• Develop a high-throughput method to screen anti-adhesive textile coatings.
• Evaluate novel and commercial coatings for bacterial adhesion reduction.
• Identify durable, biocide-free anti-adhesive textile solutions.

Main Methods:

• Established a 96-well plate-based assay for bacterial adhesion quantification using SYTO9 nucleic acid staining.
• Tested 38 commercial and novel coatings against Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Staphylococcus aureus.
• Assessed coating stability and anti-adhesive properties after 20 washing cycles using X-ray analysis.

Main Results:

• A novel poly(l-lysine)-g-poly(ethylene glycol) coating demonstrated an 80% reduction in bacterial adhesion on polyester textiles.
• The developed assay is rapid, reliable, and quantitative for high-throughput screening.
• The anti-adhesive coating exhibited stability after 20 washing cycles.

Conclusions:

• The new assay efficiently screens for non-biocidal coatings that reduce bacterial attachment.
• Poly(l-lysine)-g-poly(ethylene glycol) coatings show significant potential as sustainable anti-adhesive textile solutions.
• This research facilitates the development of hygienic, environmentally friendly textiles.