SIU researchers investigate technology to kill supergerms at the nano level

October 22, 2024

by Tim Crosby

CARBONDALE, Ill. - Researchers at Southern Illinois University Carbondale are studying how to zap antibiotic-resistant bugs using electricity on the nano scale, which could lead to fewer infection-related deaths in hospitals.

Punit Kohli, professor in the School of Chemical and Biomolecular Sciences, along with researchers from the departments of chemistry, microbiology, physiology and the SIU School of Medicine, recently published a paper in the journal Science Advances outlining their work. The technology, known as "electrically polarized nanoscale metallic" or "ENM," involves applying an electrical potential to nanoscale metallic coatings that polarizes the coatings and generates chemicals called reactive oxygenated and chlorinated species. Such substances can deactivate a wide range of harmful microorganisms.

The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office has issued a provisional patent on the technology, Kohli said.

Wide applications

Any surface prone to biological contamination is a target for the technology, Kohli said. So along with potential benefits for the health care setting, the technology might also be applied to a wide range of uses, including in homes, restaurants, public places such as schools, railway stations and airports, and industry.

"It could be incorporated on wearable masks, clothing, doorknobs, hospital furniture - like on handles and bed frames," Kohli said. "It might even be put to use in heating and air conditioning applications."

Kohli said ENM devices are quick and easy to fabricate and rely on external, low-powered batteries that operate in the milliwatt range.

"Because of the decreasing supply of new antibiotics, recent outbreaks of infectious diseases and the emergence of resistance of microorganisms to almost all available antibiotics, it is imperative to develop new effective strategies for deactivating a broad spectrum of microorganisms and viruses," Kohli said. "Conventional alkaline batteries or solar cells can power ENM devices for many hours without any observable decrease in performance."

The technology relies on the electrochemical production of certain types of ions that convert oxygen to hydrogen peroxide. That, in turn, forms reactive chemical species including hydroxyl radicals and hypochlorous acid that are highly damaging to germs, contributing to antimicrobial properties.

"It represents an unconventional but innovative tool for deactivating a broad spectrum of microorganisms," Kohli said.

The technology can be used by covering household or industrial items with a copper-silver coating before attaching a battery to it, which then generates reactive oxygenated and chlorinated species.

The technology can deactivate a wide range of microorganisms - bacteria, fungi, viruses or archaea - in as little as 10 minutes, Kohli said. Such bugs tested in the study include lentivirus, a group of model retrovirus that can cause chronic and deadly diseases, as well as Candida albicans and Aspergillus fumigatus, two fungi that can cause serious health problems or death in immunocompromised patients.

Watch a video of Kohli discussing this project, with the support of the Advance Energy Institute.

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