Paper Title
Poly (O-Phenylenediamine)/Montmorillonite Nanocomposites: A Novel Strategy to Arrest Bacterial Pathogens Infestation

Abstract
MMT/poly(o-phenylenediamine) (MMT/POPD) Nanocomposites (NC) were synthesized and evaluated for their antimicrobial potential against four bacterial strains i.e. Escherichia coli (MTCC 443), Staphylococcus aureus (MTCC 902), Pseudomonas aeruginosa (MTCC 2453) and Bacillus subtilis (MTCC 736). Antibacterial potential of NC was investigated by the broth microdilution and agar well diffusion methods. Further, effective concentration (EC50) and minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC80) of the NC were determined by broth microdilution assay. Quantitative test in broth clearly proved that NC had viable cells reduction ability for tested strains. MIC80 calculated for each NC against B. subtilis (the most susceptible strain) was in the range of 0.2-0.3 mg ml-1. NC also showed fair zone of inhibition (in mm) on agar plate in the range of 16-35 mm for all the tested strains. NC showed potent antibacterial activity in both broth and on agar plate. Results concluded that the NC can prevent the infestation of various bacterial pathogens effectively. Therefore, we propose that they are useful as effective and non-cytotoxic biologically active agents and can be used as nanocarriers with dual role i.e. in addition to carrying drugs, carrier will itself act as antibacterial agent. This dual nature of NC could be an alternative to target multi-drug resistant bacterial strains and can further be explored for their mode of action against bacterial pathogens.