Enhanced Antibiofilm Activity of Copper Nanoparticles Stabilized With Polyvinyl Pyrrolidone and Polyvinyl Alcohol Against Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Staphylococcus aureus

Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Staphylococcus aureus are biofilm‐forming pathogens that contribute to persistent infections and exhibit high resistance to conventional antibiotics. In the present study, copper nanoparticles (Cu‐NPs) were synthesized using polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) and polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) as polymeric stabilizing agents to evaluate their potential in biofilm inhibition. The synthesized Cu‐NPs were characterized by Ultraviolet–Visible (UV–Vis) spectroscopy, Fourier‐Transform Infrared (FT‐IR) spectroscopy, Dynamic Light Scattering (DLS), zeta potential, Field Emission Scanning Electron Microscopy (FE‐SEM), Energy‐Dispersive X‐ray spectroscopy (EDS), and X‐ray diffraction (XRD). The average particle sizes of the two formulations were found to be ~114 nm (PVP‐Cu‐NP) and ~127 nm (PVA‐Cu‐NP). Both NPs have demonstrated strong biofilm inhibitory activity at sub‐minimum inhibitory concentrations (Sub‐MICs) up till Day 3. The inhibitory efficacy of PVP‐NP and PVA‐NP against P. aeruginosa biofilm was 59.4% and 73.10%, respectively. Whereas the inhibitory efficacy of the two formulations against S. aureus biofilm was found to be 78.94% by PVP‐NP and 88.94% by PVA‐NP. Additionally, the Sub‐MIC concentrations of PVP‐NP and PVA‐NP significantly reduced cell surface hydrophobicity (CSH) and exopolysaccharide (EPS) production, thereby disrupting key components of biofilm architecture. These findings suggest that polymer‐stabilized copper nanoparticles may provide promising therapeutic strategies for the prevention and control of biofilm‐forming and antibiotic‐resistant disease‐causing pathogens.