ELECTROCHEMICAL, DIELECTRIC BEHAVIOUR AND IN VITRO ANTIMICROBIAL ACTIVITY OF POLYSTYRENE-CALCIUM PHOSPHATE

Author(s):
Tanvir Arfin1a, Faruq Mohammad2b

Author Affiliation:
1Department of Chemistry, Uka Tarsadia University, Maliba Campus, Gopal Vidyanagar, Bardoli 394350, India
2nstitute of Advanced Technology, Universiti Putra Malaysia, 43400 Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia

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Abstract

In continuation to our previous work with polystyrene-calcium phosphate (PS-CaP) composite, we further studied the conductivity behaviour under different electrolytic conditions. In the present report, the membrane potential measurements were conducted at different concentrations that ranges from 0.0001 c (M) 1 of respective salts like BaCl2 and MgCl2 of 2:1 electrolyte solutions at isothermal temperature (250.1°C). The observed membrane potentials of various electrolytes follows the sequencing order of BaCl2 MgCl2, confirming the cation-selective nature of the membrane. This gives an idea that the potential is a measurable parameter and can be used to characterize the charged property of the membrane. The dielectric constant decreased simultaneously with an increased frequency and also the dielectric loss tangent is shown by the complementary result with respect to dielectric constant. It is also signified from the studies that the dielectric loss tangent is directly proportional to the dielectric constant. Further, the PS-CaP material was tested for antibacterial and antifungal activity against various cultures including Streptococcus mutans, Staphylococcus pyogenes, MRSA (gram-positive bacteria), Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Salmonella typhimurium, Escherichia coli (gram-negative bacteria), and fungi of Candida albicans, Candida krusei, Candida parapsilosis and Candida neroformans. The result of this study concludes that the PS-CaP material has significant antimicrobial activity against all the cultures due to the chelating property and the cationic effect provided by the PS polymer.

KEYWORDS:
Polystyrene-calcium phosphate; Impedance measurements; Dielectric constant; Antimicrobial activity; Antifungal property