Tea Bud "Robots" Used to Kill and Clear Bacteria
Phoenix666 writes:
Tea bud "robots" used to kill and clear bacteria:
When harmful bacteria colonize the surface of items such as medical implants, they form slimy antibiotic-resistant coatings known as biofilms. Scientists have devised a new way of removing such films, and it involves magnetically steering augmented tea plant buds.
In their natural form, buds from the Camellia sinensis tea plant are not only inexpensive and biodegradable, they're also porous. They additionally contain compounds called polyphenols, which are known to kill bacteria.
[...] Named T-Budbots, the modified tea bud particles were finally placed in bacterial biofilms grown in glass dishes. Utilizing a magnet, the scientists were able to steer the particles through those films. As the T-Budbots moved along, they penetrated the coatings, killing the bacteria, and clearing the biofilms away.
The researchers hope the technique can combat antibiotic resistant bacteria.
Journal Reference:
Tamanna Bhuyan, Anitha T. Simon, Surjendu Maity, et al. Magnetotactic T-Budbots to Kill-n-Clean Biofilms, ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces (DOI: 10.1021/acsami.0c08444)
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