Abstract |
The goal of this project was to study the antimicrobial properties of three different surfaces found in a gym. Given the large number of people that handle gym equipment, it was expected that a mix of bacterial cultures often grow on various surfaces. Bacterial growth on surfaces relates to surface roughness; therefore, it was hypothesized that materials from the gym of different surface roughnesses would exhibit different antibacterial properties. Neoprene (coating on dumbbells), textured metal (similar to metal dumbbells), and vinyl (found on the seats of weight machines), had their surface roughnesses measured using contact angle measurements of droplets. The three surfaces, along with a positive control, were inoculated with Staphylococcus aureus, allowed to incubate for 24 hours, then imaged with the scanning electron microscope. The number of bacteria in each field of view for each sample was counted and the three treatments were compared. The hypothesis was supported in that the neoprene had the greatest surface roughness and the largest number of bacteria viewed on the sample. This finding can lead to further investigations on better methods to disinfect rough surfaces found in the gym environment to better protect users from disease.
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