Recent advances in the development of antimicrobial nanotextiles for prevention of infectious diseases transmission in healthcare workers

Abstract In this chapter, we have discussed about the synthesis of antibacterial textile dressings using sodium alginate (SA)-coated silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) in hospital clothing, surgical scrubs, and linens for protection against clinical bacterial pathogens. Cotton fabric embedded with sodium alginate capped silver nanoparticles (SA@AgNPs) was tested for antibacterial activity against clinical pathogens. To optimize the experimental condition for the synthesis of SA@AgNPs, the parameters were varied by fixing a range, such as different concentration of SA (0.5%, 1%, 1.5%, 2%), volume by reducing agent aniline (50 μL, 100 μL, 150 μL), and heat treatment (30–240 s). The synthesized nanoparticles were subsequently fabricated on cotton textile and characterized using SEM, XRD, and FTIR. Further, the antibacterial efficacy of SA@AgNPs-coated cotton fabrics was tested for antibacterial activity against different clinical pathogens such as Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, and Pseudomonas aureus. These results proved that the SA@AgNPs-treated cotton fabrics exhibit excellent antibacterial activity which can be used for medical application.