IRMOF-3 Biological Activity Enhancement by Post-Synthetic Modification

The growing resistance of pathogens to conventional antibiotics has become a public health problem requiring novel effective solutions. In this context, metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) are attracting attention because they can act as reservoirs releasing metal ions with antibacterial properties. This action is reminiscent of that proposed for metal- and metal oxide-nanoparticles but different from the action of antibiotics. These features make MOFs promising candidates for pharmaceutical and biomedical applications. Here, IRMOF-3 was modified with 2,5-dimethoxytetrahydrofuran, N,N '-disuccinimidyl carbonate, acryloyl chloride, and phthalaldehyde to produce, respectively, IRMOF-3-FU, IRMOF-3-SU, IRMOF-3-AC, IRMOF-3-DL in 38 to 90 % yields. Remarkably, the biological activity of these compounds evaluated against various bacterial and fungal strains is higher than the activity of commercial antibiotics.