Photothermal/Physical Synergistic Antibacterial of MXene Quantum Dots/Hyperbranched Antimicrobial Peptide Nanoassemblies

Unlike conventional antibiotic antibacterial methods, photothermal antibacterial methods have fewer toxic side effects and do not result in drug resistance. However, because of the complex bacterial microenvironments, simple photothermal treatment cannot provide a good antibacterial effect. Thus, a dual-mode nanoantibacterial photothermal agent (MxNy) was constructed, which was composed of MXene QDs with excellent photothermal conversion effects and Nanoengineered Peptide-Grafted Hyperbranched Polymers (NPGHPs) with broad-spectrum antibacterial activity. MXene QDs in the assembly could be used to adjust the Zeta potential of the system so that the assembly system could change the type of dominant antibacterial activity, achieve broad-spectrum antibacterial characteristics, and form an antibacterial matrix. More surprisingly, with the increase in temperature, the antibacterial activity of antimicrobial peptides also increased. The photothermal conversion efficiency of the assembly reached 39.6%. In vitro and in vivo antibacterial experiments showed that the MxNy could significantly inhibit the proliferation of Gram-positive bacteria Staphylococcus aureus and Bacillus subtilis after MXene QDs regulated the Zeta potential of the system, and the toxicity was negligible. Mouse experiments also proved that the wound recovered faster after MxNy near-infrared treatment. Therefore, the MxNy is a multifunctional collaborative antibacterial platform with good biological application prospects.