Dual-Functional Antimicrobial and Low-Fouling Cellulose Coatings

Surfaces contaminated with pathogens raise significant concerns due to their potential role in increasing the risk of disease transmission and subsequent infection. Existing surface coatings face several challenges that undermine their effectiveness and their broader applicability. These include the impact of surface topography on pathogen adhesion, which leads to biofouling, high production costs, scalability issues, as well as environmental concerns stemming from the utilization of toxic antifoulants and biocides. Here, we report dual-functional surface coatings with intrinsic antimicrobial and low fouling properties that are synergistic. The coatings are a porous reactive cellulose fibers network with dialdehyde functionality that demonstrates high antibacterial and antiviral performance against <i>Staphylococcus aureus</i>, methicillin-resistant <i>Staphylococcus aureus</i>, <i>Escherichia coli</i>, and influenza A/H1N1 virus. Furthermore, we showed that the wettability of the coating significantly reduces the adhesion and colony formation of bacteria and their dead debris after inactivation by dialdehyde groups. The reactive cellulose fibers did not demonstrate any acute toxicity on L929 cells, which can meet the safe use of coating on the contact surfaces. The cellulose fibers coating derived from agricultural waste is cost-effective, eco-friendly, and highly scalable and is promising for use in packaging, household products, public facilities, and medical settings surfaces.