High-Efficiency Near-Infrared Light Responsive Antibacterial System for Synergistic Ablation of Bacteria and Biofilm

Bacterial infection is seriously threatening human health, and the design of high-efficiency and good biocompatibility antibacterial agents is an urgent problem to be solved. However, with the emergence of drug-resistant bacteria, the existing antibacterial agents have low killing efficiency, and the formation of biofilms has further weakened the therapeutic effect. Herein, we constructed an efficient antibacterial system mediated by near-infrared light for synergistic antibacterial and biofilm dissipation. Specifically, the ZnO/Ti3C2Tx with heterojunction was synthesized by hydrothermal growth of ZnO on the surface of lamellar Ti3C2Tx-MXene. The prepared ZnO/Ti3C2Tx had better photothermal ability than ZnO and Ti3C2Tx, respectively. The local thermal effect can not only destroy the integrity of the bacterial membrane but also promote the release of Zn2+ ions and further improve the antibacterial performance. ZnO/Ti3C2Tx achieved a 100% sterilization rate (better than either ZnO or Ti3C2Tx) at 150 μg mL–1. The biofilm dissipation experiment further proved its excellent biofilm ablation effect. More importantly, the results of in vitro cell culture and animal experiments have demonstrated its good biological safety. In summary, this new type of nanomaterial shows strong local chemical photothermal sterilization ability and has great potential to replace traditional antibacterial agents.