Tunable nanotextured materials
A material with nanopillar structures extending from a substrate. The nanopillars are engageable by organisms to cause an interaction, such as cellular destruction.
Laible, Philip D.↗
Engineering topics
Michalska, Martyna
Publications and source records attributed to Michalska, Martyna.
Localized functionalization of nanotextured surfaces
A material with a nanotexture comprising structures extending from a substrate. The structures are modified by coating the nanotexture with a protective coating and partially removing the coating, exposing a portion of the structure for functionalization.
Michalska, Martyna↗
Antimicrobial properties of nanostructured surfaces – demonstrating the need for a standard testing methodology
Bioinspired nanostructured materials that exhibit antimicrobial properties are being synthesized and tested at increasing rates for use in healthcare, manufacturing processes, and diagnostics. Although progress has been made in improving and understanding their bactericidal activity, arguably, the biggest problem currently in the field is the lack of a standard testing methodology that allows for optimal characterization and better comparison of emerging nanostructures. In this work, we examine two forms of nanostructured silicon that vary in their ability to kill certain bacterial species due to different physical mechanisms and derive guidelines for the comparative testing. We perform a comprehensive evaluation of methodologies used extensively in the field (e.g., colony counting and live dead analysis) and the novel application of high-throughput flow cytometry. The data reveal how the techniques are complementary but not always directly equivalent or correlative. Therefore, comparison of results obtained using different methodologies on different materials can be grossly misleading. We report significant variations in bactericidal efficiencies depending on experimental environments (medium type, etc.) and methodologies employed. In addition, we demonstrate how cytometry is yet another powerful complementary tool that can aid the mechanistic understanding of antimicrobial activities of rough surfaces. Besides standardization for comparison, ultimately, evaluation methods need to consider anticipated applications. Then and only then can the true potential (or limitation) of a novel material be determined for its suitability for advancement in a particular field of use.
77 NANOSCIENCE AND NANOTECHNOLOGY↗