Silver-Conjugated-Polyarginine Anchored Cotton Fabrics Exhibit Durable and Efficient Antimicrobial Properties

Due to the hierarchical alignment of cellulose fibrils, cotton fabrics used in clothing possess excellent moisture and thermal management properties. However, this property can retain sweat and sebum secreted from human skin, which may harbor harmful microorganisms and affect human health. In addition, the abuse of antibiotics leads to the emergence of drug-resistant pathogens and cross infections, which require new strategies and antibacterial materials to control this situation. In this study, we constructed a new kind of antibacterial fabric (C-Arg@Ag) by integrating polyarginines (poly-Arg) and silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) onto the surface of cotton fabrics. The results of XPS and SEM showed that poly-Arg was covalently anchored to cotton fabrics via free-radical polymerization, and AgNPs were tightly attached to the surface of cotton fibers through coordination bonds with amine groups of poly-Arg. Biological assays revealed that C-Arg@Ag possessed potent antibacterial activity, with bactericidal rates rapidly reaching about 90% within 4 h, and the bactericidal rate increased with the incubation time. Fluorescence staining showed that the membrane structure of bacteria was severely damaged, indicating that C-Arg@Ag did not easily induce drug resistance. More importantly, C-Arg@Ag was highly firm and durable, with its bactericidal rate remaining at about 80% even after washing 50 times. Furthermore, the synergistic antibacterial method of polyarginine complexed AgNPs and covalent anchoring strategy fabricate C-Arg@Ag not only possessed negligible cytotoxicity and high hygroscopicity but also had little effect on the tensile strength of cotton fabrics. The findings highlight the potential application of C-Arg@Ag in biomedical textiles.