Implant-associated infections (IAIs) are one of the leading concerns in orthopedics and dentistry as they
commonly lead to implant failure. The presence of biofilms and, increasingly frequently, drug-resistant
bacteria further impairs the efficacy of conventional antibiotics. Immobilization of antimicrobial peptides
(AMPs) on implant surfaces is a promising alternative to antibiotics for prevention of IAIs. In addition, the
use of functional linkers for the AMP tethering enables to increase the antimicrobial potential and the
bioactivities of the coating. In this study, an extracellular-matrix-mimicking system based on elastin-like
recombinamers (ELRs) has been developed for the covalent anchoring of AMPs and investigated for use
as a hybrid antibiofilm coating. A drip-flow biofilm reactor was used to simulate in vivo environmental
dynamic conditions, thus showing that the presence of the AMPs in the hybrid coatings provided strong
antibiofilm activity against monospecies and microcosm biofilm models of clinical relevance. These
results, together with an excellent cytocompatibility towards primary gingival fibroblasts, encourage the
use of ELRs as multivalent platforms for AMPs and open up a wide range of possibilities in the biofabrication
of advanced coatings combining the antibiofilm potential of AMPs and the outstanding tunability and
biomechanical properties of the ELRs.
