Biologically-Derived Targeted Antimicrobials for Textile Applications

Antimicrobial treatment of military textile systems is intended to provide enhanced protection to the Warfighter in the field by preventing colonization of harmful bacteria that cause various skin and soft tissue infections (SSTI) such as impetigo, boils, abscesses, cellulitis and life-threatening necrotizing fasciitis. Current treatments can impart antimicrobial functionality to textiles; however, they all possess broad-spectrum antimicrobial activity, affecting all skin bacteria. The processing of these compounds is also costly with high environmental impact. Bio-derived antimicrobial coatings offer selective elimination of targeted bacteria without affecting commensal bacteria required for skin health. There is considerable interest in using phages, the viruses of bacteria, to control pathogenic bacterial populations. They can uniquely offer specificity against targeted bacteria. By judicious selection of phages and host coating matrices, this program aims to develop robust antimicrobial coatings with high efficacy and specificity against S. aureus. The focus of the work is the validation of coating efficacy and demonstration of high-volume production at low costs.