Biocompatible but Antibacterial Mechanism of Graphene Oxide for Sustainable Antibiotics

ABSTRACT Graphene oxide (GO) has attracted research attention as a promising biomedical material principally owing to its biocompatibility as well as excellent antibacterial properties, although the exact mechanism for the apparently conflicting both activities remains controversial yet. We present controlled physicochemical and biomimetic features of GO that exert antibacterial effects via selective destabilization of the bacterial membrane. Our model cell study, exploiting artificial vesicular phospholipid assembly along with spectroscopic analyses, finds that surface oxygen functionalities of GO determine antibacterial activity by highly specific interaction with POPG, a phospholipid selectively present in membranes of various bacterial species, including drug‐resistant bacteria. Furthermore, GO‐incorporated nanofibers were evaluated in infected wound models in mice and pigs, where they effectively suppressed bacterial growth and accelerated wound healing with minimal inflammation. These findings highlight the potential use of GO as a safe and sustainable antibacterial to avoid repeated overuse of conventional antibiotics.