Interest in antibacterial nanomaterials has surged in recent years, driven by the rise in antibiotic resistance among microbes. However, their practical application remains limited because many crucial properties have yet to be thoroughly investigated. In this study, we have developed novel nanofibrous membranes based on hydrophilic polyacrylonitrile (PAN) or hydrophobic polycaprolactone (PCL) with embedded hydrophilic or hydrophobic zinc(II)phthalocyanines (ZnPcs) as photosensitizers and investigated their water disinfection properties. Several key characteristics were evaluated to link the activity of the material and composition/structure. As demonstrated by reflectance UV‐vis spectroscopy, the aggregation states of dyes within the polymer support vary significantly. We have proposed and validated the use of fluorescence lifetime imaging (FLIM) for visualizing “active sites” in the membranes. The results of this study provide useful insights for the engineering of photoactive nanomaterials with tailor‐made properties and highlight the crucial role of the nature of polymeric support in modulating the material's activity.

中文翻译：

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通过荧光寿命成像可视化静电纺光敏膜中的活性位点


近年来，由于微生物抗生素耐药性的增加，人们对抗菌纳米材料的兴趣激增。然而，它们的实际应用仍然有限，因为许多关键特性尚未得到彻底研究。在这项研究中，我们开发了基于亲水性聚丙烯腈（PAN）或疏水性聚己内酯（PCL）的新型纳米纤维膜，并嵌入亲水性或疏水性锌（II）酞菁（ZnPcs）作为光敏剂，并研究了它们的水消毒性能。评估了几个关键特性，以将材料的活性与成分/结构联系起来。正如反射紫外可见光谱所证明的，聚合物载体内染料的聚集状态变化很大。我们提出并验证了使用荧光寿命成像（FLIM）来可视化膜中的“活性位点”。这项研究的结果为具有定制特性的光活性纳米材料的工程提供了有用的见解，并强调了聚合物载体的性质在调节材料活性方面的关键作用。