Polymer developed with a ‘switch’ to help fight antibiotic resistance

Shu Wang of the Chinese Academy of Science and the his team have developed polymers with antimicrobial activity that can be turned on and off

The supramolecular antibiotic switch, which is described in the Angewandte Chemie journal, can reversibly “turn-on” and “turn-off” its antibacterial activity on demand, providing a proof-of-concept for a way to regulate antibacterial activity of biotics.

The switch relies on supramolecular assembly and disassembly of cationic poly(phenylene vinylene) derivative (PPV) with cucurbit[7]uril (CB[7]) to regulate their different interactions with bacteria.

The polymers have linear backbones with cationic ammonium arms that control the material’s antibiotic properties.

The positively charged arms help kill bacteria by penetrating into cell membranes.

This behavior is governed primarily by electrostatics, although hydrophobic interactions may also contribute according to Wang.

This strategy does not require any chemical modification on the active sites of the antibacterial agent and could also regulate the antibacterial activity of classical antibiotics or photosensitisers in photodynamic therapy.

This supramolecular antibiotic switch may be a successful strategy to fight bacterial infections and decrease the emergence of bacterial resistance to antibiotics from a long-term point of view according to the report.