Antibacterial Properties of Tungsten Oxide

Tungsten oxide (WO₃), a compound containing the metals tungsten and oxygen, has gained widespread attention for its antibacterial properties, which could be a potential innovative leap forward in addressing antibiotic resistance and, in turn, advancing medicine and healthcare globally.

Threats to public health are complex, with many different pathogens that are a concern for morbidity and mortality. For example, bacterial infections are a major problem. Health statistics show that approximately 48 million cases of pathogenic diseases are diagnosed each year. More specifically, bacterial infections are also a cause of 88,000 deaths per year in the United States. This illustrates the importance of bacterial strains to public health and the urgent need for innovative research on quality disease treatment and prevention.

In addition, the overuse of antibiotic therapy in recent years has reduced its level of efficacy against bacterial infections resulting in the emergence of superbugs. These highly resistant strains of bacteria are notorious for their resistance to antibiotic therapy, especially the transfer of resistance genes to other strains, further increasing the resistance of antibiotics to the bacteria.

Current research has elucidated the benefits of utilizing inorganic nanomaterials because of their small size and large surface area, which enhances their high reactivity. In addition, their suitability as antimicrobial agents allow inorganic nanomaterials to remain stable under harsh conditions, including high temperatures and pressures.

Inorganic nanomaterials can be used for various biomedical applications such as biocatalysis, cell imaging, and drug delivery for tumor diagnosis and treatment.

Metal nanoparticles, such as those containing silver and copper, have illustrated powerful bactericidal activity; however, silver nanoparticles interact with the thiol groups of intracellular proteins and may be toxic to mammalian cells. In contrast, metal oxide nanoparticles have been good candidates for use against bacteria due to their low cost and low toxicity levels.

The antibacterial activity of tungsten has been explored by different researchers, for example by incorporating tungsten oxide within nanodots, and these particles were found to be more effective in killing germs than the larger, more uniform ultra-small particles (1.1 ± 0.3 nm).

Tungsten oxide nanodots within the UV-Vis spectrum illustrate strong absorption throughout the near-infrared range, making these innovative particles optimal for applications such as tumor imaging. The versatility of this antimicrobial agent increases its investigation in a variety of applications.

Specifically, studies using WO₃ nanodots against bacteria have been shown to have positive results. Researchers found that a 2-hour treatment with this antimicrobial agent has illustrated high potential bactericidal activity against E. coli. A concentration of 100 μg/mL of the antimicrobial agent reduced the effectiveness of the cells to 19.7%.

This antibacterial efficacy against other bacterial species such as S. aureus was also found to be maximized by treatment with WO3 nanodots for 6 hours, resulting in the loss of the potential viability of these bacterial species.

The use of tungsten oxide for antimicrobial purposes could be a potentially innovative way to provide a solution for inefficient antibiotics that may not be able to treat antibiotic-resistant strains of bacteria. Incorporating nanotechnology into antimicrobial uses would be very useful due to the benefits of nanotechnology. Since WO₃ is a novel compound, resistance to bacteria would no longer be an issue. Harnessing the antimicrobial properties of WO₃may address many bacteria-related infections worldwide and help reduce morbidity and mortality.

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