Despite their broad biomedical applications in orthopedics and dentistry, metallic implants are still associated with failures due to their lack of surface biofunctionality, leading to prosthesis-related microbial infections. In order to address this issue, the current study focuses on the fabrication and characterization of a novel type of antibacterial coating based on gallium (III)-chitosan (Ga (III)-CS) complex layers deposited on metallic substrates via electrophoretic deposition (EPD). Aiming for the production of homogeneous and monophasic coatings, a two step-procedure was applied: the first step involved the synthesis of the Ga (III)-CS complex, followed by EPD from suitable solutions in an acetic acid–aqueous solvent. The influence of Ga (III) concentration on the stability of the suspensions was evaluated in terms of zeta potential. Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) and energy dispersive X-ray (EDX) spectroscopic analyses indicated the chelation of CS with Ga (III) within the coatings, while scanning electron microscopy (SEM) confirmed that no additional metallic gallium deposited during EPD. Furthermore, the results demonstrated that the wettability, mechanical properties, swelling ability, and enzymatic degradation of the coatings were affected by the quantity of Ga (III) ions. Colony forming unit (CFU) tests showed a strong synergistic effect between CS and Ga (III) in inhibiting Escherichia coli strain growth compared to control CS samples. An in vitro study with MG-63 cells showed that Ga (III)-containing coatings were not toxic after 24 h of incubation.

中文翻译：

---

基于抗菌镓（III）-壳聚糖配合物的功能涂层的电泳沉积和表征

尽管金属植入物在整形外科和牙科领域具有广泛的生物医学应用，但由于缺乏表面生物功能，金属植入物仍与失败相关，导致假体相关的微生物感染。为了解决这个问题，当前的研究集中在新型抗菌涂层的制备和表征上，该抗菌涂层基于通过电泳沉积（EPD）沉积在金属基质上的镓（III）-壳聚糖（Ga（III）-CS）复合层）。为了生产均相和单相涂层，应用了两个步骤：第一步是合成Ga（III）-CS配合物，然后是从乙酸水溶液中的合适溶液中进行EPD。Ga（III）浓度对悬浮液稳定性的影响通过zeta电位进行评估。傅里叶变换红外（FTIR）和能量色散X射线（EDX）光谱分析表明，涂层中CS与Ga（III）螯合，而扫描电子显微镜（SEM）证实在EPD期间没有沉积其他金属镓。此外，结果表明，Ga（III）离子的量影响涂层的润湿性，机械性能，溶胀能力和酶促降解。菌落形成单位（CFU）测试表明CS和Ga（III）在抑制 结果表明，Ga（III）离子的量影响涂层的润湿性，机械性能，溶胀能力和酶促降解。菌落形成单位（CFU）测试表明CS和Ga（III）在抑制 结果表明，Ga（III）离子的量影响涂层的润湿性，机械性能，溶胀能力和酶促降解。菌落形成单位（CFU）测试表明CS和Ga（III）在抑制与对照CS样品相比，大肠杆菌菌株的生长。MG-63细胞的体外研究表明，含Ga（III）的涂层在孵育24小时后无毒。