Functionalized polyurethane applied for foodborne pathogen detection

Abstract : Fast monitoring and control quality of food products become increasingly important for public health. Among foodborne pathogenic microorganisms, bacteria are the most common foodborne pathogens in which the currently used methods are time consuming, labour-intensive and costly. This work aims to develop a new biochip potentially used for an assessment of bacterial contamination on food product. An assessment for bacterial detection employs simple FTIR spectroscopic analysis with a complimentary surface characterization by SEM technique. The biochip based on carboxylic acid functionalized polyurethane (PU) film was synthesized for bacterial detection in particular Salmonella Typhimurium. The PU in this study was synthesized from the reaction of the alcohol groups of hydroxyl telechelic natural rubber based oligomer with the isocyanate groups of 2,4-toluene diisocyanate. The carboxylic acid functional group was incorporated into the PU chain by addition of dimethylol propionic acid as a chain extender during PU preparation. The PU film having different degree of carboxylic acid was explored for the detection of S. Typhimurium. The structural and morphological changes of the PU film after loading of the bacteria were successfully detected using ATR-FTIR and SEM, respectively. The PU film developed is considered a rapid tool for S. Typhimurium detection and has a potential application for rapid food control quality.