Green Synthesis of Nanoparticles and Nanostructured Coatings with Antibacterial Properties

Dear Colleagues,

A major problem facing the global health-care system nowadays is the great adaptability that some infectious bacteria have to invade body tissues and colonize biomaterial surfaces. In fact, due to the relentless appearance of antibiotic-resistant bacterial strains, bacterial infections will cause more deaths than all types of cancer together in the year 2050 if the current trend continues.

Nanomaterials are interesting to fight bacterial infections. Due to their small dimensions, nanoparticles can easily interact with bacteria and even penetrate the bacterial membrane. Moreover, they exhibit higher reactivity compared to their respective bulk materials due to their high surface area to volume ratio. On the other hand, nanostructured coatings can inhibit bacterial adhesion (non-fouling surfaces) and even possess antimicrobial agents to destroy a bacterial biofilm.

The fabrication of nanomaterials in a safe, environmentally-friendly and cost-effective manner is of the utmost importance. In particular, a promising approach is given by green chemistry: the use of living organisms (such as bacteria, human cells, fungi or plants), dietary and organic natural compounds (such as coffee, tea, citric or honey extracts, to name a few) and biological waste material coming from industrial plants, as efficient raw materials for the synthesis of nanoparticles.

This Special Issue of Nanomaterials will attempt to cover the recent advancements in the environmentally-friendly production of nanoparticles and nanostructured coatings that exhibit antibacterial properties.

Dr. José Miguel García-Martín
Guest Editor

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