Novel Compatible Silver Nanoparticles Functionalized by Vitamin C and its Derivatives: Characterization and their antibacterial Activity against Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus

Abstract

Silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) have been boosted in the medical field because of using suitable stabilized ligands leading to create specific shapes and sizes. AgNPs in this study are prepared in one-step using vitamin C (VC) and kojic acid (KA) as stabilized ligands in presence of sodium borohydride (NaBH4). As known, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA, USA) approved the use of KA for dermatological treatment purposes. Also, vitamin C as an antioxidant has reduced cancer diseases. The AgNPs are sufficiently stabilized by these biomolecules to remain dispersed in an aqueous solution for up to 12 weeks under room conditions. The AgNPs were characterized using UV-Visible absorption spectroscopy (UV-Vis), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), dynamic light scattering (DLS), and attenuated Fourier transform infrared (ATR-FTIR). The produced AgNPs were spherical and monodispersed with a size diameter range of 11–15 nm based on the TEM results. The antibacterial activity of AgNPs was tested against Escherichia coli (E. coli) and Streptococcus aureus (S. aureus) at different concentrations (4 µg/ml, 8 µg/ml, 15 µg/ml, and 30 µg/ml). The finding results demonstrated that both these AgNPs significantly reduced bacteria growth, especially at the highest concentration of 30 µg/m. The VC-AgNP was highly active on the E. coli and S. aureus even at a lower concentration of 4 µg/ml. VC/or KA-AgNPs provided more encouraging results than when VC and KA were used alone, which would eventually allow VC dosages to be reduced in the future, which could be more effective against many diseases in the future.