Titanium spikes kill superbugs drug-free by literally ripping them apart

Don't buy into this alarmism and hysteria of superbugs and antimicrobial resistance (AMR)!

Human ingenuity can and will defeat bacteria and viruses as needed!

"... But, researchers from RMIT University have come up with a novel, drug-free way to kill superbugs that’s inspired by the antimicrobial surface on the wings of some insects. Insects such as dragonflies, cicadas, and damselflies have tiny pillars – nanopillars – on the surface of their wings that act as a “mechano-biocidal,” physically pulling apart bacterial cells and killing them. ...

So, the researchers set about creating their own mechano-biocidal, developing a titanium surface covered with specially designed microscale spikes, each about the size of a bacteria cell, using a technique called plasma etching.

They tested the effectiveness of the surface in killing multi-drug-resistant Candida and found that about half the cells were destroyed soon after making contact with the spikes. Significantly, the other half – the cells that were not immediately destroyed – were injured enough that they were unable to reproduce or cause infection. ...

The micropillared titanium surface had already been found to be effective against two common pathogens, Staphylococcus aureus (‘Golden Staph’) and Pseudomonas aeruginosa bacteria, in a previous study published in the journal Materialia. ..."

From the abstract:

"The proportion of hospital-acquired medical device infections caused by pathogenic, multi-drug resistant Candida species occurs in up to 10% of implantations. In this study, a unique antifungal micro-pillared titanium surface pattern is developed, which demonstrates both fungicidal and fungistatic activity, persistently deterring biofilm formation by Candida albicans and multi-drug resistant Candida auris fungi for up to 7 days. The Ti micropillars of 3.5 µm height are fabricated using maskless inductively coupled plasma reactive ion etching. The micro-textured surface consistently kills ≈50% of Candida spp. irreversibly attached cells and prevent the proliferation of the remaining cells by inducing programmed cell death. Proteomic analysis reveals that Candida cells undergo extensive metabolic stress, preventing the transformation from yeast to the filamentous/hyphal cell phenotype that is essential for establishing a typical in vitro biofilm. The mechanical stress imparted following interaction with the micropillars injures attaching cells and induces apoptosis whereby the Candida cells are unable to be revived in a non-stress environment. These findings shed new insight toward the design of durable antifungal surfaces that prevent biofilm formation by pathogenic, multi-drug resistant yeasts."

Titanium spikes kill superbugs drug-free by literally ripping them apart Inspired by the bacteria-killing structures seen on the wings of some insects, researchers have developed a drug-free way to kill off drug-resistant microbes that commonly cause hospital-acquired infections. Their technique is a novel and effective way of tackling the problem of antibiotic-resistant superbugs.

Titanium micro-spikes skewer resistant superbugs A new study suggests rough surfaces inspired by the bacteria-killing spikes on insect wings may be more effective at combatting drug-resistant superbugs, including fungus, than previously understood.

Apoptosis of Multi-Drug Resistant Candida Species on Microstructured Titanium Surfaces (open access)

An intact Candida cell on polished titanium surface (left), and a ruptured Candida cell on the micro-spiked titanium surface (right)