{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,27]],"date-time":"2026-03-27T06:55:52Z","timestamp":1774594552381,"version":"3.50.1"},"reference-count":45,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"6","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2023,3,21]],"date-time":"2023-03-21T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1679356800000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"name":"EU Horizon 2020 Research and Innovation Programme under the Marie Sklowdowska-Curie","award":["765042"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["765042"]}]},{"name":"EU Horizon 2020 Research and Innovation Programme under the Marie Sklowdowska-Curie","award":["UIDB\/04469\/2020"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["UIDB\/04469\/2020"]}]},{"name":"Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT)","award":["765042"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["765042"]}]},{"name":"Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT)","award":["UIDB\/04469\/2020"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["UIDB\/04469\/2020"]}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Nanomaterials"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Prevention of bacterial adhesion is a way to reduce and\/or avoid biofilm formation, thus restraining its associated infections. The development of repellent anti-adhesive surfaces, such as superhydrophobic surfaces, can be a strategy to avoid bacterial adhesion. In this study, a polyethylene terephthalate (PET) film was modified by in situ growth of silica nanoparticles (NPs) to create a rough surface. The surface was further modified with fluorinated carbon chains to increase its hydrophobicity. The modified PET surfaces presented a pronounced superhydrophobic character, showing a water contact angle of 156\u00b0 and a roughness of 104 nm (a considerable increase comparing with the 69\u00b0 and 4.8 nm obtained for the untreated PET). Scanning Electron Microscopy was used to evaluate the modified surfaces morphology, further confirming its successful modification with nanoparticles. Additionally, a bacterial adhesion assay using an Escherichia coli expressing YadA, an adhesive protein from Yersinia so-called Yersinia adhesin A, was used to assess the anti-adhesive potential of the modified PET. Contrarily to what was expected, adhesion of E. coli YadA was found to increase on the modified PET surfaces, exhibiting a clear preference for the crevices. This study highlights the role of material micro topography as an important attribute when considering bacterial adhesion.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/nano13061117","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2023,3,21]],"date-time":"2023-03-21T04:48:01Z","timestamp":1679374081000},"page":"1117","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":13,"title":["Can Superhydrophobic PET Surfaces Prevent Bacterial Adhesion?"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"13","author":[{"given":"Tugce","family":"Caykara","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"CENTI-Center for Nanotechnology and Smart Materials, Rua Fernando Mesquita 2785, 4760-034 Vila Nova de Famalic\u00e3o, Portugal"},{"name":"CEB-Centre of Biological Engineering, Universidade do Minho, Campus de Gualtar, 4710-057 Braga, Portugal"}]},{"given":"Sara","family":"Fernandes","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"CENTI-Center for Nanotechnology and Smart Materials, Rua Fernando Mesquita 2785, 4760-034 Vila Nova de Famalic\u00e3o, Portugal"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-7432-0726","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Adelaide","family":"Braga","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"CEB-Centre of Biological Engineering, Universidade do Minho, Campus de Gualtar, 4710-057 Braga, Portugal"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-3217-2320","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Joana","family":"Rodrigues","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"CEB-Centre of Biological Engineering, Universidade do Minho, Campus de Gualtar, 4710-057 Braga, Portugal"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-9265-0630","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Ligia R.","family":"Rodrigues","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"CEB-Centre of Biological Engineering, Universidade do Minho, Campus de Gualtar, 4710-057 Braga, Portugal"}]},{"given":"Carla Joana","family":"Silva","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"CENTI-Center for Nanotechnology and Smart Materials, Rua Fernando Mesquita 2785, 4760-034 Vila Nova de Famalic\u00e3o, Portugal"},{"name":"CITEVE-Portuguese Technological Centre for the Textile and Clothing Industries, Rua Fernando Mesquita 2785, 4760-034 Vila Nova de Famalic\u00e3o, Portugal"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2023,3,21]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"12003","DOI":"10.1039\/c3ra40497h","article-title":"Superhydrophobic surfaces for the reduction of bacterial adhesion","volume":"3","author":"Zhang","year":"2013","journal-title":"RSC Adv."},{"key":"ref_2","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"363","DOI":"10.1007\/s00430-020-00660-8","article-title":"Exploring the potential of polyethylene terephthalate in the design of antibacterial surfaces","volume":"209","author":"Sande","year":"2020","journal-title":"Med. 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