Over the course of a year more than 100,000 people die from an infection they contracted in a hospital. A team of chemists at the University of Villanova are working toward creating a frontline of defense against these preventable infections. An article from phys.corg reports that Kevin P.C. Minbiole, PhD, and his team of researchers are developing chemical disinfectants that are are able to kill the bacteria causing many of these infections, even the drug-resistant strains. The most widely used sanitizers incorporate "quaternary ammonium compounds(QACs) to lyse, or burst, harmful bacteria cells." These molecules are usually shaped like arrows, however the researchers have produced compounds that are shaped like tridents thereby increasing its ability to kill harmful bacteria. In the course of their research, they have produced over 300 different compounds and their results seem very promising.
Quite possibly the most exciting extension of this research is with the work being done with polymer chemist, Deanna Zubrist, PhD. Over the last year they have been working together in hopes of producing a polymer that incorporates these next-generation disinfectants that could be used in hospitals around the world. They hope they can produce a plastic-like polymer that could cover various surfaces throughout hospitals to reduce the risk of infection.
This research is a prime example of the blessing and a curse that science/chemistry has been to the world. Advances in science have given us antibiotics that saves lives. But they have also made us more susceptible to contracting drug-resistant strains of infections.
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