Two-dimensional NbS2 nanosheets with hyperthermia for killing bacteria to promote infected wound healing

Antibiotic resistance and bacteria-related infections pose a threat to lives around the globe, which calls for urgent development of advanced therapy to curb this menace. Although photothermal therapy (PTT) is promising, most photothermal agents lack good photothermal conversion performance which restrains their application. Transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs) nanosheets can exhibit many advantages in antibacterial applications due to their unique two-dimensional structure with larger specific surface area and higher near-infrared (NIR) absorption. Here, we prepared two-dimensional NbS 2 nanosheets (NbS 2 NSs) with good biological stability and high biocompatibility through a high-temperature reduction reaction. NbS 2 NSs exhibited excellent and stable photothermal properties, which were capable of killing Pseudomonas aeruginosa ( P. aeruginosa ) and Staphylococcus aureus ( S. aureus ) under 5 min of 808 nm laser irradiation. In addition, the morphological characterization of bacteria showed bacterial cell membrane destruction. Furthermore, NbS 2 NSs under NIR irradiation inhibited the formation of biofilms and quickly eradicated S. aureus from an infected wound to promote wound healing through a hyperthermia effect. Overall, this work provides an attractive strategy for synthesizing and applying two-dimensional NbS 2 NSs with significant implications for bacterial eradication and future biomedical applications.