Electrostatic assembly functionalization of poly (γ-glutamic acid) for biomedical antibacterial applications

Abstract Poly (γ-glutamic acid) (γ-PGA) has been found widespread applications in biomedical field because of its excellent water solubility, biocompatibility, and bioactivity. Herein, a water-insoluble γ-PGA antibacterial compound is facilely fabricated via one-pot electrostatic assembly of γ-PGA with cationic ethyl lauroyl arginate (ELA). The functionalized γ-PGA compound (γ-PGA-ELA) ethanol solution can facilely produce colorless and transparent coatings on various inorganic, metal, and polymeric substrates, especially for the lumen of slender catheters (length up to 2 m, and inner diameter down to 1 mm). The functionalized γ-PGA coating presents remarkable antibacterial efficacy in vitro and in vivo. In addition, the γ-PGA compound is used as antibacterial additives of polyolefin via melting extrusion, and the as-prepared antibacterial polyolefin demonstrates advantageous antibacterial efficacy. More importantly, the functionalized γ-PGA coating exhibit good hemocompatibility, low cytotoxicity, and satisfactory histocompatibility. The as-proposed γ-PGA compound has a great potential to serve as a safe and multifunctional antibacterial alternative to combat biomedical devices-related infections.