Protective hybrid coating containing silver, copper and zinc cations effective against human immunodeficiency virus and other enveloped viruses.

BACKGROUND: Healthcare-acquired infections by pathogenic microorganisms including viruses represent significant health concern worldwide. Next to direct transmission from person-to-person also indirect transmission from contaminated surfaces is well documented and important route of infections. Here, we tested antiviral properties of hybrid coating containing silver, copper and zinc cations that was previously shown to be effective against pathogenic bacteria including methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus. Hybrid coatings containing silver, copper and zinc cations were prepared through radical polymerization via sol-gel method and applied on glass slides or into the wells of polymethylmethacrylate plates. A 10 µl droplet of several viruses such as human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1), influenza, dengue virus, herpes simplex virus, and coxsackievirus was added to coated and uncoated slides or plates, incubated usually from 5 to 240 min and followed by titer determination of recovered virus. RESULTS: Scanning electron microscopy analysis showed better adhesion of coatings on glass surfaces, which resulted in 99.5-100 % HIV-1 titer reduction (3.1 ± 0.8 log10TCID50, n = 3) already after 20 min of exposure to coatings, than on coated polymethylmethacrylate plates with 75-100 % (1.7 ± 1.1 log10TCID50, n = 3) and 98-100 % (2.3 ± 0.5 log10TCID50, n = 3) HIV-1 titer reduction after 20 and 120 min of exposure, respectively. Slower virucidal kinetics was observed with other enveloped viruses, where 240 min exposure to coated slides lead to 97 % (dengue), 100 % (herpes simplex) and 77 % (influenza) reduction in virus titers. Interestingly, only marginal reduction in viral titer after 240 min of exposure was noticed for non-enveloped coxsackie B3 virus. CONCLUSIONS: Our hybrid coatings showed virucidal activity against HIV and other enveloped viruses thus providing further findings towards development of broad-spectrum antimicrobial coating suitable for surfaces in healthcare settings.

New type of protective hybrid and nanocomposite hybrid coatings containing silver and copper with an excellent antibacterial effect especially against MRSA.

Epidemics spread many types of pathogenic bacterial strains, especially strains of MRSA (Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus), which are being increasingly reported in many geographical areas [1]. This is becoming to be a serious global problem, particularly in hospitals. Not only are antibiotics proving to be increasingly ineffective but also the bacteria responsible for more than 70% of hospital-acquired bacterial infections are resistant to at least one of the drugs commonly used to treat them. In this study, hybrid coating A1 and nanocomposite hybrid coating A2 based on TMSPM (3-(trimethoxysilyl)propyl methacrylate, MMA (methyl methacrylate), TEOS (tetraethyl orthosilicate) and IPTI (titanium isopropoxide) containing silver and copper ions with or without nanoparticles of titanium dioxide were prepared by the sol-gel method. They were deposited on glass, poly(methyl methacrylate) and cotton using dip-coating or spin-coating, and then cured at 150 °C for 3 h or, in the case of poly(methyl methacrylate), at 100 °C for 4.5 h. The morphology and microstructure of these hybrid coatings were examined by SEM. The abrasion resistance was tested using a washability tester and found to depend heavily on the curing temperature. Seven types of bacterial strains were used to determine the profile of antibacterial activity, namely Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus - MRSA (CCM 4223), MRSA-2 (CCM 7112), Acinetobacter baumanii, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and Proteus vulgaris (according to ALE-G18, CSNI). All the samples were tested by irradiating with either a UV-A or a daylight fluorescent lamp. All types of hybrid coating A1 and nanocomposite hybrid coating A2 were found to possess an excellent antibacterial effect, including against the pathogenic bacterial strains of MRSA, which present a dangerous threat on a global scale.