Construction of S-N-C bond for boosting bacteria-killing by synergistic effect of photocatalysis and nanozyme

Bacterial infection-related diseases are major public safety issues leads to millions of deaths annually. Herein, a porous sulfur doped graphitic carbon nitride (g-SCN) for ecofriendly, metal-free and low systemic toxicity were synthesized. Sulfur doping enables to broaden the absorption spectrum and promote the photocarriers separation for photocatalysis enhancement. Moreover, sulfur element will coordinate with nitrogen, changing the electronic state and endowing g-SCN with the property of nanozyme. More importantly, we established different models and confirmed that S-N-C coordination is the source of peroxidase (POD)-like activity through theory and experiment. The increased specific surface area of g-SCN, ascribing to the porous structure, makes it easier to trap bacteria. With the synergistic effect of photocatalysis and nanozyme, the prepared g-SCN has the ability to kill both gram-negative and gram-positive bacterium, with an antibacterial efficiency up to 100%. This work provides innovative synergistic strategy for constructing nanomaterials for highly efficient antibacterial therapy.