Title
Enzyme-Photocatalyst Tandem Microrobot Powered by Urea for Escherichia coli Biofilm Eradication
Author
Katherine Villa, Hanna Sopha, Jaroslav Zelenka, Martin Motola, Lukas Dekanovsky, Darya Chylii Beketova, Jan M. Macak, Tomáš Ruml, Martin Pumera
Year
2021
Journal
Nano micro small
Abstract
Urinary-based infections affect millions of people worldwide. Such bacterial infections are mainly caused by Escherichia coli (E. coli) biofilm formation in the bladder and/or urinary catheters. Herein, the authors present a hybrid enzyme/photocatalytic microrobot, based on urease-immobilized TiO2/CdS nanotube bundles, that can swim in urea as a biocompatible fuel and respond to visible light. Upon illumination for 2 h, these microrobots are able to remove almost 90% of bacterial biofilm, due to the generation of reactive radicals, while bare TiO2/CdS photocatalysts (non-motile) or urease-coated microrobots in the dark do not show any toxic effect. These results indicate a synergistic effect between the self-propulsion provided by the enzyme and the photocatalytic activity induced under light stimuli. This work provides a photo-biocatalytic approach for the design of efficient light-driven microrobots with promising applications in microbiology and biomedicine.
Instrument
V-750
Keywords
infections, nanotube, enzyme, microbiology, biomedicinece