As concerns grow about the end of the antibiotic era due to proliferating strains of superbugs unhampered by drugs, promising advancements are emerging in the realm of antimicrobials. Researchers in Singapore have developed a new material shown to kill 99.7 percent of E. coli bacteria in seconds, while also attacking bacterial cell membranes, which prevents new antibiotic-resistant strains from growing. Their work is published in the journal Small.
The material, called imidazolium oligomers, is made of a synthetic chemical compound linked in chains, which enables it to destroy bacteria by penetrating cell membranes, unlike antibiotics, which leave bacterial cell structures intact.
"Our unique material can kill bacteria rapidly and inhibit the development of antibiotic-resistant bacteria," Yugen Zhang, PhD, lead researcher on the paper, said in a statement. "Computational chemistry studies supported our experimental findings that the chain-like compound works by attacking the cell membrane. This material is also safe for use because it carries a positive charge that targets the more negatively charged bacteria, without destroying red blood cells."
The researchers also tested their material against Staphylococcus aureus, Candida albicans, and other common strains of antibiotic-resistant bugs, all of which were killed as effectively as E. coli.