Interactions Between Carbon Nanotubes and Bacteria
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0953-G01-08
Interactions Between Carbon Nanotubes and Bacteria Pavan M. V. Raja1, Pulickel M. Ajayan2, Omkaram Nalamasu2,3, and Anurag Sharma4 1 Chemical and Biological Engineering, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, NY, 12180 2 Materials Science and Engineering, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, NY, 12180 3 Center for Integrated Electronics, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, NY, 12180 4 Earth and Environmental Sciences, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, NY, 12180
ABSTRACT While carbon nanotubes (CNTs) possess diverse application potential ranging from polymer nanocomposites to nanostructured therapeutic devices, their environmental implications are still not well understood. In this study, we conducted experiments to monitor changes in bacterial physiology as a consequence of interactions with the CNTs. Our experiments included a common anaerobe, Escherichia coli, in an SWNT system as a model for understanding the environmental implications of CNTs. Observations over several weeks indicated that the bacteria in the presence of SWNTs showed significant morphological changes, that included elongation. It is interesting to note that similar morphological changes have been reported in response to extreme temperature and pressure, chemical agents, and quantum dots. In this presentation, the authors will present further physiological evidence, such as bacterial growth and substrate consumption rates, towards defining a possible bacteria-CNT interaction model consistent with these experimental observations, and will discuss the overall environmental implications.
INTRODUCTION Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) are unique, synthetic, high aspect ratio carbon-based nanostructured materials (CNMs) possessing several valuable properties and potential applications, and can be classified as either singlewalled (SWNT) or multiwalled (MWNT). [1] The rapid growth of the nanotechnology industry in general, and the CNT industry in particular, points to the need to anticipate, study and prepare for the impact of CNTs on the environment. Studying the interactions between CNTs and a model microbe (e.g. Escherichia coli) could provide a simple and controlled approximation to their impact on the environment, since microbes are omnipresent in nature, and are crucial to several natural processes such as the cycling of elements. [2] Past researchers have looked at microbial interactions of CNTs mainly from the application viewpoint. Lin et al [3] have explored the use of MWNTs for immunomagentic recognition of specific strains of bacteria. The use of CNTs for recognition of specific bacteria could enable better devices for the detection of pathogenic bacteria. Lee and co-workers [4] found that MWNTs coated with titanium dioxide inactivated bacterial spores, in the presence of UV radiation, thereby serving as potential antibacterial agents. Giersig et al [5] reported on the microwave-assisted electroporation of bacteria by MWNTs, for potential intracellular delivery of drugs and other biomolecules. However, such studies focuse
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