Antibacterial Activity of Inverse Vulcanized Polymers.

Dop, Romy A ORCID: 0000-0002-3903-7236, Neill, Daniel R ORCID: 0000-0002-7911-8153 and Hasell, Tom ORCID: 0000-0003-4736-0604 (2021) Antibacterial Activity of Inverse Vulcanized Polymers. Biomacromolecules, 22 (12). pp. 5223-5233. ISSN 1525-7797, 1526-4602

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Abstract

Inverse vulcanization is a bulk polymerization method for synthesizing high sulfur content polymers from elemental sulfur, a byproduct of the petrochemical industry, with vinylic comonomers. There is growing interest in polysulfides as novel antimicrobial agents due to the antimicrobial activity of natural polysulfides found in garlic and onions (Tsao et al. J. Antimicrob. Chemother. 2001, 47, 665-670). Herein, we report the antibacterial properties of several inverse vulcanized polymers against Gram-positive Staphylococcus aureus and Gram-negative Pseudomonas aeruginosa, two common causes of nosocomial infection and pathogens identified by the World Health Organization as priorities for antimicrobial development. High sulfur content polymers were synthesized with different divinyl comonomers and at different sulfur/comonomer ratios, to determine the effect of such variables on the antibacterial properties of the resulting materials. Furthermore, polymers were tested for their potential as antibacterial materials at different temperatures. It was found that the test temperature influenced the antibacterial efficacy of the polymers and could be related to the glass transition temperature of the polymer. These findings provide further understanding of the antibacterial properties of inverse vulcanized polymers and show that such polymers have the potential to be used as antibacterial surfaces.

Item Type:	Article
Uncontrolled Keywords:	Staphylococcus aureus, Sulfur, Polymers, Anti-Bacterial Agents, Polymerization
Divisions:	Faculty of Health & Life Sciences Faculty of Health & Life Sciences > Inst. Infection, Vet & Ecological Sciences Faculty of Science & Engineering > School of Physical Sciences
Depositing User:	Symplectic Admin
Date Deposited:	18 Feb 2022 08:49
Last Modified:	01 Mar 2026 11:18
DOI:	10.1021/acs.biomac.1c01138
Related Websites:	Author Publisher
URI:	https://livrepository.liverpool.ac.uk/id/eprint/3149123
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