Synthesis of Polymer Nanospheres Conjugated Ce (IV) Complexes for Constructing Double Antibacterial Centers

The antimicrobial materials are rapidly emerging as a primary component in mitigation of bacterial pathogens, and functional polymers play a vital role for preparation of antibacterial materials because of their good durability and low toxicity. In this study, a novel antimicrobial materials with double antibacterial centers were synthesized by polymer nanospheres (PNPs) being conjugated with Salphen Ce (IV) complexes (HSpCe). Firstly, a typical antibacterial monomer, [3-(methacryloylamino)propyl]trimethyl ammonium chloride (MPAC), was copolymerized with acrylate monomers including methyl methacrylate (MMA) and butyl acrylate (BA) in EtOH/H 2 O, which afforded the copolymer (PMMB) containing quaternary ammonium salt (QAs). Secondly, a typical antibacterial complex, the Salphen ceric (IV) complex (HSpCe) was mixed with PMMB and styrene (St), and St was further in-situ polymerized, which afforded polymer nanospheres conjugated Salphen Ce complexes (HSpCe@PNPs). Its structure and composition were characterized by UV–Vis, IR, SEM and XPS, while the emulsifying properties were measured. Then, its antibacterial performance was evaluated against E. coli and S. aureus . It was found that HSpCe@PNPs presented an excellent antibacterial activity, which is much higher than that of QAs and HSpCe alone. And the antibacterial activities were more than 99% at the minimum inhibitory concentration (700 μg mL −1 ), which is mainly the result of the conjugation of QAs and HSpCe. In summary, a novel antibacterial polymer material with double antibacterial centers was successfully synthesized, which greatly improved the antibacterial activity of the material, and was expected to be applied in the field of antibacterial coatings and medicine. Graphical Abstract Polymer nanospheres conjugated Salphen Ce complexes (HSpCe@PNPs) were synthesized by one-pot two-steps method, and the obtained HSpCe@PNPs would create new opportunities in a wide variety of applications.