microbial species. The mechanism of photocatalytic bacteria
inactivation was
first proposed by Matsunaga et al. [6], and has
been well-reviewed subsequently by others [7,8]. The antimicro-
bial effect of TiO2 is attributed to the OH radicals and oxygen
reactive species (ROS) generated as part of the photocatalytic
process in which the bacterial cell membrane is the primary ROS
attack site, leading to lipid peroxidation, cell membrane damage
and eventually cell lysis and death [9,10]. The photocatalytic
antibacterial properties of titanium dioxide, along with its
otherwise non-toxic and inexpensive nature, have attracted a
great deal of attention and are now the basis for a number of
commercial antibacterial products