Quaternary Ammonium Leucine-Based Surfactants: The Effect of a Benzyl Group on Physicochemical Properties and Antimicrobial Activity.

ABSTRACT: Quaternary ammonium amphiphiles are a class of compounds with a wide range of commercial and industrial uses. In the pharmaceutical field, the most common quaternary ammonium surfactant is benzalkonium chloride (BAC), which is employed as a preservative in several topical formulations for ocular, skin, or nasal application. Despite the broad antimicrobial activity against Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria, as well as fungi and small enveloped viruses, safety concerns regarding its irritant and cytotoxic effect on epithelial cells still remain. In this work, quaternary ammonium derivatives of leucine esters (C10, C12 and C14) were synthesised as BAC analogues. These cationic surfactants were characterised in terms of critical micelle concentration (CMC, by tensiometry), cytotoxicity

SUBMITTER: Perinelli DR 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6631462 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature