Antibacterial cellulose fiber via RAFT surface graft polymerization.
2-(dimethylamino)ethyl methacrylate (DMAEMA) was polymerized from cellulosic filter paper via reversible addition-fragmentation chain transfer (RAFT) polymerization. The tertiary amino groups of the grafted PDMAEMA chains were subsequently quaternized with alkyl bromides of different chain lengths (C8-C16) to provide a large concentration of quaternary ammonium groups on the cellulose surface. The antibacterial activity of the quaternized and nonquaternized PDMAEMA-grafted cellulosic fibers was tested against Escherichia coli. The antibacterial activity was found to depend on the alkyl chain length and on the degree of quaternization, i.e., the amount of quaternary amino groups present in the cellulose graft copolymers. The PDMAEMA-grafted cellulose fiber with the highest degree of quaternization and quaternized with the shortest alkyl chains was found to exhibit particularly high activity against E. coli.
Roy
Debashish
D
Department of Colour and Polymer Chemistry, University of Leeds, Woodhouse Lane, Leeds LS2 9JT, UK.
Knapp
Jeremy S
JS
Guthrie
James T
JT
Perrier
Sébastien
S
D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000494:pharmacology; D002482:Cellulose / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000494:pharmacology; D002850:Chromatography, Gel; D004926:Escherichia coli / Q000187:drug effects; D009682:Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy; D008826:Microbial Sensitivity Tests; D008855:Microscopy, Electron, Scanning; D011108:Polymers / Q000737:chemistry*; D000644:Quaternary Ammonium Compounds / Q000737:chemistry; D017550:Spectroscopy, Fourier Transform Infrared
D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents; D011108:Polymers; D000644:Quaternary Ammonium Compounds; D002482:Cellulose