Exploring the inhibitory potentials of metal-doped graphene in combating biofilm formation: a review

Abstract The emergence of anti-microbial resistance (AMR) has become a pressing need for the design of novel and potential anti-microbial and anti-biofilm agents. Nano-scaled materials have been designed in the research domain to curb the populous spread of microbial biofilms. In the context of nano-scaled materials, metal nanoparticles are of unique importance and have been studied in detail for the treatment of biofilm propagation and menace. The crucial aspects of metal nanoparticles and their complexation with graphene have been extensively understood at the molecular level in this review article. The molecular interplay between the various external stimuli, like pH, temperature, sound, mechanical stimuli, and different external factors, on biofilm regulation has been studied and accentuated in the paper. The effect of such external factors succumbing to the biofilm-producing microbes, to the potential inhibitory activities of such novel nano-composites has been unraveled in the present review. Understanding the methodology behind nanoscaled treatments and their molecular mechanisms could pave the way for novel biofilm targeting strategies.