Front Microbiol. 2026 Aug 27;17:1928666. doi: 10.3389/fmicb.2026.1928666. eCollection 2026.
ABSTRACT
Bacterial contamination poses serious threats to human health and material integrity in fields such as healthcare, food safety, and marine engineering. Conventional chemical antibacterial strategies increasingly fail to meet practical demands due to the emergence of bacterial drug resistance and concerns over environmental sustainability. Inspired by functional biological surfaces, physical antibacterial strategies based on the synergistic regulation of micro/nanostructures and superhydrophobicity have attracted growing attention. However, the coupling relationships among microstructural parameters, wetting states, interfacial mechanical behaviors, and bacterial responses remain insufficiently understood. This review systematically summarizes the bactericidal mechanism induced by micro/nanostructures and the anti-adhesive mechanism induced by superhydrophobicity. Furthermore, the representative application scenarios in biomedical devices, food processing, and marine environments are discussed. Finally, current progress, key challenges, and future perspectives in the development of micro/nanostructured superhydrophobic synergistic antibacterial surfaces are critically reviewed. Overall, this strategy offers significant potential for environmentally friendly and long-lasting antibacterial solutions. However, a deeper understanding of the coupling mechanisms among surface structure, wettability, and cellular responses is still required to fully exploit its antibacterial capabilities.
PMID:42724937 | PMC:PMC13561474 | DOI:10.3389/fmicb.2026.1928666
