Interaction of triclosan with Langmuir monolayers representing cell membrane models

• Grant number: 17/04542-3
• Support Opportunities: Research Grants - Visiting Researcher Grant - International
• Start date: May 15, 2017
• End date: July 14, 2017
• Field of knowledge: Physical Sciences and Mathematics - Physics - Condensed Matter Physics
• Principal Investigator: Osvaldo Novais de Oliveira Junior
• Grantee: Osvaldo Novais de Oliveira Junior
• Visiting researcher: Paulo Antonio Martins Ferreira Ribeiro
• Visiting researcher institution: Universidade Nova de Lisboa, Portugal
• Host Institution: Instituto de Física de São Carlos (IFSC). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). São Carlos , SP, Brazil
• Associated research grant: 13/14262-7 - Nanostructured films from biologically-relevant materials, AP.TEM

Abstract

Dr. Paulo António Ribeiro has been a research partner of the Bernhard Gross Polymer Group for many years since he did his PhD. in our group in the 1990s. Since then, we have maintained collaboration that in recent years has focused on the properties of films and interaction of DNA with Langmuir films. In this collaboration, we seek complementarity of knowledge and infrastructure for the production and characterization of films. In our latest papers, we have included results obtained in São Carlos and Lisbon, in a complementary way. For the planned visit, we wish to take advantage of the sabbatical leave of Dr. Paulo Ribeiro to address a recent problem that emerged from the discovery that triclosan, widely used in personal care products such as toothpastes and soaps, may represent an environmental risk, in addition to its (desired) antimicrobial activity. There are two lines of research relevant to this scientific problem: i) the first is the detection of small amounts of triclosan in waters, since the disposal of this active principle can contaminate the environment due to the large amount derived from hygiene products. ii) The second line is related to the interaction of triclosan with lipid films that simulate cell membranes, in which one seeks to correlate physicochemical results with the biological action of triclosan, besides serving to verify if a lipid matrix may be suitable for The manufacture of sensors (from line i) above). (AU)