Corn oil and gallic acid-based coating material for hospital environment: synthesis, characterization, and molecular docking study

Purpose This study aims to present the preparation of esteramide (CEA) resin, from natural products: corn oil (CO) and gallic acid (GA), for application as protective coatings. Design/methodology/approach CO was transformed into fatty N, N’ bis-2-hydroxyethyl corn amide (HECA) by base-catalyzed amidation reaction. HECA then underwent esterification reaction with GA, forming CEA, through a solvent-less method. The structures of HECA and CEA were confirmed by fourier transform infrared and nuclear magnetic resonance. Molecular docking study, thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and antibacterial studies were also carried out. Physico-mechanical performance of coatings was evaluated by standard methods. Findings HECA and CEA showed good binding affinity against the target proteins sortase A (PDB ID: 1t2w) in G+ve bacteria and N-acyl homoserine lactone hydrolase (PDB: 3dhb) in G−ve bacteria. CEA resin showed good antibacterial behavior against Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus. CEA was formulated into a coating material that exhibited good scratch hardness (2.5 kg), impact resistance (100 lb) and bending ability (1 / 8 inch). The bacterial zone of inhibition exhibited by CEA coatings was 16 mm for S. aureus and 13 mm for E. coli. Originality/value Coatings were found to be scratch- and impact-resistant as well as flexibility-retentive. CEA coatings were found suitable for hospital environment. TGA results indicated that these coatings can be safely used upto 200°C.