Visible light mediated killing of multidrug-resistant bacteria using photoacids

Increasing acidity is a promising method for bacterial inactivation by inhibiting the synthesis of intracellular proteins at low pH. However, conventional ways of pH control are not reversible, which can cause continuous changes in cellular and biological behaviours and are harmful to the host. Utilizing a photoacid that can reversibly alter pH over two units, we demonstrated a strong bacterial inhibition assisted by visible light. The pH value of the solution reverts back to the original level immediately after the irradiation is stopped. If a photoacid is combined with colistin, the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of colistin on multidrug-resistant (MDR) Pseudomonas aeruginosa can be improved ∼32 times (from 8 to 0.25 μg mL−1), which significantly decreases the toxicity of colistin in clinics. Evidenced by the extremely low toxicity of the photoacid, this strategy is promising in MDR bacteria killing.