New way found to control bacteria growth

Published: May 19, 2008 at 10:08 AM

CAMBRIDGE, Mass., May 19 (UPI) -- U.S. scientists have found they can control the amount of bacteria adhering to surfaces by controlling the stiffness of some polymer films.

The breakthrough came after Massachusetts Institute of Technology researchers found that the stiffness of surfaces partly determines if bacteria sticks to them.

MIT engineers created ultrathin films made of polymers that could be applied to medical devices and other surfaces to control microbe accumulation -- either preventing accumulations of bacteria or promoting growth of desirable bacteria.

The goal is to help reduce the spread of hospital-acquired infections, which kill 100,000 people each year.

"All other factors being equal, mechanical stiffness of material surfaces increases bacterial adhesion," said Professor Krystyn Van Vliet, who noted stiffness has usually been overlooked in studies of how bacteria adhere to surfaces in favor of other traits, such as surface charge, roughness and attraction to or repulsion from water.

The research that included Michael Rubner, Jenny Lichter, Todd Thompson, Maricela Delgadillo and Takehiro Nishikawais is to appear in an upcoming issue of the journal Biomacromolecules.

© 2008 United Press International, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Order reprints



Additional News Stories
No short-term yuan appreciation seen (4 min)
NHL: Montreal 4, Phoenix 2 (7 min)
Distracted man drives Bugatti into lagoon (17 min)
COL FB: Rutgers 31, South Florida 0 (21 min)
Tagliabue to head a study of USOC (27 min)
NFL: San Francisco 10, Chicago 6 (32 min)
NBA: Cleveland 109, Miami 102 (50 min)
fark
Drew's list of 'seasonal' stories is woefully incomplete without "annual turkey baster search"
Experts wonder if the upswing in retail theft may be connected to the unemployment rate. What the...
MPAA shuts down an entire town's wi-fi because one person illegally downloaded a movie. Take that,...
Verizon has found a way to charge you for accidental keystrokes
Coming to a hipster douche near you: 1890s fashion. 'Cause nothing says "manly" like knee socks,...
Tennessee man found asleep in a ditch with a loaded rifle and a bottle of moonshine