Nanoparticle Clothes Help Prevent the Cold and Flu

Cornell fiber scientists and fashion designers have joined forces to create clothing that helps prevents colds and flu. The two-toned dress and metallic denim jacket have been treated with silver nanoparticles.

A microscope is needed to distinguish the basis of this new look - electrostatically charged nanoparticles creating a protective shield around the cotton fibers in the top part of the dress, and the sleeves, hood and pockets of the jacket.

The upper portion of the dress contains cotton coated with silver nanoparticles. Dong first created positively charged cotton fibers using ammonium- and epoxy-based reactions, inducing positive ionization. The silver particles, about 10-20 nanometers across were synthesized in citric acid, which prevented nanoparticle agglomeration.

Silver possesses natural antibacterial qualities that are strengthened at the nano-scale, thus giving Ong's dress the ability to deactivate many harmful bacteria and viruses. The silver infusion also reduces the need to wash the garment, since it destroys bacteria, and the small size of the particles prevents soiling and stains.


SOURCE:
TechNovelgy.com

Well, we have clothes that keep themselves clean, now we have clothes that help us stay healthy.

This technique/technology is very cool indeed.


Comments, Opinions?

From what I know about nanotechnology, this could actually work, at least to a certain degree. I have to ask two questions, however:

1) How expensive is this?
2) Can it be washed? I.E. will the washing process damage the silver coating?

There are socks that do this that have been out for a while now. I am kind of concerned about our over reliance on such means of prevention. How long until the Bacteria and Virus's develop a way around it is what I want to know.

Also, Silver Nanoparticle bandages have been in stores for quite a while. The silver acts like Polysporin and as such, a gel anti-infectious agent isn't needed.

I never thought of that... I wonder if the bacteria and viruses can become resistant, like some strains are becoming resistant to antibiotics. I don't know enough about microorganisms to say for sure, though.

If socks are out that can do this, then they must be washable, and at least within a reasonable price range. It also makes sense to start with socks, given how nasty people's feet can get... :p

And yeah, the nano-silver bandages have been out for awhile. There's a company local to me that was either the first or one of the first to make those. www.nucryst.com...

It's just Natural Selection. These things only kill 99.95 % of Bacteria present. It's the 0.05 % that I'm worried about. Think about it, all competition for these surviving bacteria would be wiped out and that leaves them to multiply and mutate into whole new lines of antibiotic resistant species.