Microwave-Excited Thermoelectric Catalysis of Organic–Inorganic Nanohybrid for Highly Effective Treatment of Staphylococcus aureus-Infected Osteomyelitis

Osteomyelitis caused by Staphylococcus aureus ( S. aureus ) is difficult to cure with antibiotics or phototherapy. Microwave (MW) has become a promising method for treating deep tissue infections due to its strong penetration ability, however, the effects of MW dynamics still need to be improved to achieve rapid and effective treatment. In this work, tin selenide/polypyrrole (SnSe/PPy) nanocomposites with MW thermoelectric catalytic performance are successfully prepared, and their ideal thermal production capability stems from increased dielectric loss, including interfacial polarization and conductive loss, as well as magnetic loss. Furthermore, the enhanced interchain electronic transport of PPy and the phonon scattering effect have improved the thermoelectric performance of SnSe/PPy. Under MW cyclic irradiation, SnSe/PPy can convert the generated temperature difference into electrical energy and further promote the ionization of sodium species, the plasma and electrons react with O 2 to produce superoxide anion (·O 2 − ), enabling SnSe/PPy to rapidly increase the temperature and effectively eliminate S. aureus infection. After irradiated circularly by MW for 20 min, the antibacterial effect of SnSe/PPy can reach 99.46 ± 0.11%. Considering the remarkable antibacterial effectiveness and excellent biosafety, it is believed that it provides new insights into the design of MW thermoelectric catalysis antimicrobial materials.