Antimicrobial Activity of Silver Containing Crosslinked Poly(Acrylic Acid) Fibers

Bacterial and fungal pathogens have caused serious problems to the human health. This is particularly true for untreatable infectious diseases and clinical situations where there is no reliable treatment for infected patients. To increase the antimicrobial activity of materials, we introduce silver nanoparticle (NP) patches in which the NPs are incorporated to the surface of smooth and uniform poly(acrylic acid) (PAA) nanofibers. The PAA nanofibers were thermally crosslinked with ethylene glycol via heat treatment through a mild method. The characterization of the resulting PAA-silver NP patches was done using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), UV spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction (XRD), and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). To demonstrate the antimicrobial activity of PAA, we incorporated the patches containing the silver NPs into strains of fungi such as Candida albicans (C. albican) and bacteria such as Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA). The PAA-silver fibers achieved zones of inhibition against C. albicans and MRSA indicating their antimicrobial activity against both fungi and bacteria. We conclude that silver NP patches exhibited multiple inhibitory actions for the interruption and blockage of activity fungal and bacterial strains, which has the potential as an antimicrobial agent in infectious diseases. Moreover, the proposed material has the potential to be used in antimicrobial textile fabrics, food packaging films, and wound dressings.