Figure 5. Killing of E. coli and cleavage of released nucleic acids and proteins by the MNP-H₂O₂ system.

a, Schematic of MNP-H₂O₂ killing of E. coli and cleavage of released nucleic acids and proteins. b, MNP-H₂O₂ cleaved nucleic acids released from killed E. coli cells. “C” denotes control with nucleic acids only. “M” denotes DNA marker. c, MNP-H₂O₂ cleaved proteins released from killed E. coli cells. “M” denotes protein marker. These experiments show that the MNP- H₂O₂ system was able to degrade the complex mixture of organic components that results from bacterial death. Penetration of organic materials would be an important characteristic of a disinfectant. All experiments were repeated in triplicate with representative images shown.