Surprising antibacterial activity and selectivity of hydrophilic phosphonium polymers

Artificial polymers, like antibiotic peptides, need both hydrophobic and hydrophilic domains in their molecular structure to exert antibacterial activity. Now, researchers from Canada have synthesized a phosphonium polymer that challenges this view. As outlined in the journal Angewandte Chemie, their polymer salt contained no hydrophobic alkyl chains but still acted as an extraordinarily efficient biocide. A re-evaluation of established strategies in antibiotics polymer research might be necessary.

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