Publications by authors named "Sofia C Santamarina"

The increase in the antibiotic resistance of bacteria is a serious threat to public health. Photodynamic inactivation (PDI) of micro-organisms is a reliable antimicrobial therapy to treat a broad spectrum of complex infections. The development of new photosensitizers with suitable properties is a key factor to consider in the optimization of this therapy.

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The appearance of microbes resistant to antibiotics requires the development of alternative therapies for the treatment of infectious diseases. In this work two polymers, and were synthesized by the nucleophilic aromatic substitution of 5,10,15,20-tetrakis(pentafluorophenyl)porphyrin and its Zn(II) complex with ethylenediamine, respectively. In these structures, the tetrapyrrolic macrocycles were ,'-ethylene crosslinked, which gives them greater mobility.

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The widespread use of antibiotics has led to a considerable increase in the resistance of microorganisms to these agents. Consequently, it is imminent to establish new strategies to combat pathogens. An alternative involves the development of photoactive polymers that represent an interesting strategy to kill microbes and maintain aseptic surfaces.

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A new BODIPY (BDP 1) bearing a dimethylaminopropoxy group attached to a phenylene unit was synthesized. This compound was brominated to obtain the halogenated analog BDP 2, which was designed to enhance the photodynamic effect of BODIPY to kill bacteria without an intrinsic cationic charge. The basic amino group located at the end of the propoxy bridge can acquire a positive charge by protonation in an aqueous medium, increasing the binding to bacterial cells.

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The antimicrobial capability and recyclability of two conjugates that combines the versatility of iron oxide magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs) with the high photosensitizing proficiency of boron-dipyrromethene (BODIPY) dyes are assessed. By a relatively simple synthetic pathway, two conjugates were obtained. The first one, MNP-B1, contains a highly fluorescent dye for bioimaging and suitable inactivating properties.

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