We show that bimetallic nanoparticles (NPs) of AuPt without any surface modification are potent antibiotic reagents, while pure Au NPs or pure Pt NPs display no antibiotic activities. The most potent antibacterial AuPt NPs happen to be the most effective catalysts for chemical transformations. The mechanism of antibiotic action includes the dissipation of membrane potential and the elevation of adenosine triphosphate (ATP) levels. These bimetallic NPs are unique in that they do not produce reactive oxygen species as most antibiotics do. Being non-toxic to human cells, these bimetallic noble NPs might open an entry to a new class of antibiotics.
Keywords: bacteria; bimetallic nanoparticles; gold; platinum.
© 2014 The Authors. Published by Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA. This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial NoDerivs License, which permits use and distribution in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited, the use is non-commercial and no modifications or adaptations are made.