Enhancement of Bactericidal Activity via Cyclic Poly(cationic liquid) Brushes

In addition to extensive studies of conventional linear poly(ionic liquids) (PILs), exploration of the effects of PIL topology, especially cyclic architecture, on bactericidal properties will expand the design possibilities for the development of excellent antibacterial surfaces. Herein, the preparation of antibacterial surfaces based on cyclic PIL brushes is reported for the first time and how the cyclic PIL architecture affects bactericidal activity is investigated. It is shown that the cyclic architecture imparted PIL brushes with enhanced bactericidal activity, achieving only 1.7% of bacterial viable percentage against gram-negative Escherichia coli using Live/Dead staining methods, compared to 6.6% for the corresponding linear PIL brushes. The enhanced bactericidal activity is also validated by the direct observation of scanning electron microscopy and a colony counting assay. Further mechanism studies reveal that the substantially different morphologies of cyclic aggregates and altered surface charge density induced by the cyclic PIL architecture can account for the enhanced bactericidal activity.