Inactivation of pathogenic Klebsiella pneumoniae by CuO/TiO 2 nanofibers: A multifunctional nanomaterial via one-step electrospinning

The fabrication and characterization of one-dimensional CuO/TiO 2 nanofibers with high photocatalytic and antibacterial activities are presented. The CuO/TiO 2 nanofibers were prepared by electrospinning of colloid composed of titanium isopropoxide, poly(vinylpyrroliodine) (PVP) and copper nanoparticles and calcination at 700°C in air for 1 h. The antibacterial activity was tested using Klebsiella pneumoniae as model organism by calculation of the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC). The obtained CuO/TiO 2 nanofibers showed prominent photocatalytic activity under visible light to degrade reactive black5 and reactive orange16 dyes in aqueous solutions and effectively catalyze K. pneumoniae inactivation. The decomposition process of the cell wall and cell membrane was directly observed by TEM analysis after the exposure of the K. pneumoniae to the nanofibers. Interestingly, the introduced photocatalyst can be reused with the same photocatalytic activity. Overall, the combination of CuO and TiO 2 can be synergistic and resulted in CuO/TiO 2 composite nanofibers having superior photocatalytic and antimicrobial potential to impede K. pneumoniae growth which causes bacterium to die ultimately. © 2012 Elsevier Ltd and Techna Group S.r.l. All rights reserved.