The specific objectives outlined to reach the main objective were presented as the 4 first Work Packages of the project:
(a) Synthesis & characterisation of a new class of POM-hybrids (WP1)
(b) Evaluation of the in vitro anti-aggregation and antibacterial activities of the PePiPOMs (WP2)
(c) Direct linking of peptides to POM anions (WP3)
(d) In situ evaluation of PePiPOMs on real surfaces (plastic and metal) (WP4)
Since the beginning of the action, work has been performed on both design and preparation of new POM-peptide hybrids (by different approaches) and the study of their antibacterial and antibiofilm activities and the research of their mechanism of action.
The hybrids have been characterized by common spectroscopic techniques (NMR, IR, UV-vis, EPR), by TGA, MS and electron microscopies. For the antibacterial assays, model non-pathogenic bacteria strains have been used: E. coli, B. subtilis, S. epidermidis, P. fluorescens. The researcher has been trained in microbiology culture and research. Detailed studies of the mechanism of action of the hybrids are being carried out with promising results which will set a milestone for this project and for the field of POM hybrids and other inorganic-hybrid materials with antimicrobial properties.
In addition, the researcher contributed to antimicrobial assays of other series of compounds, resulting in two publications: molecules and pharmaceuticals.
Exploitation and dissemination:
This project has not produced results suitable for commercial exploitation. The action and some of its results have been presented at the XVI Symposium of Young Researcher in Chemistry (JIQ 2019, Valencia, Spain), at the ACS Spring 2021 meeting (online) and at the Spanish Conference on Biomedical Applications (SBAN 2021, online). We are currently preparing manuscripts describing the antimicrobial activity and mechanism of action of POM-peptide hybrids and other inorganic molecules, as well as a critical review on the topic.
