Abstract
Gold nanoparticles have gained interest in biomedical sciences in the areas of nano-diagnostics, bio-labeling, drug delivery, and bacterial infection. In this study, we examined, for the first time, the antibacterial and antibiofilm properties of plasmonic gold nanoprisms against human pathogenic bacteria using MIC and crystal violet. In addition, the expression level of GroEL/GroES heat shock proteins was also investigated by western blot. Gold nanoparticles were characterized by TEM and EDX, which showed equilateral triangular prisms with an average edge length of 150 nm. Antibacterial activity testing showed a great effect of AuNPs against pathogenic bacteria with MICs values ranging from 50 μg/mL to 100 μg/mL. Nanoparticles demonstrated strong biofilm inhibition action with a percentage of inhibition ranging from 40.44 to 82.43%. Western blot analysis revealed that GroEL was an AuNPs-inducible protein with an increase of up to 66.04%, but GroES was down-regulated with a reduction of up to 46.81%. Accordingly, plasmonic gold nanoprisms, could be a good candidate for antibiotics substitution in order to treat bacterial infections.
Highlights
Pathogenic bacteria are microorganisms that cause infectious diseases
This study investigates for the first time the effect of plasmonic gold nanoprisms on biofilm formation and GroEL/GroES proteins expression in some pathogenic bacteria as well as their antibacterial properties
The antibacterial activity showed that AuNPs are effective against tested pathogenic bacteria
Summary
Pathogenic bacteria are microorganisms that cause infectious diseases. They can transmit from person to person directly or indirectly through animal and insect vectors, as well as through polluted water and food. The infections caused by drug-resistant bacteria result in additional very expensive medical costs [2,3]. Faced with this critical situation, the development of new antibacterial agents and therapeutic strategies is urgently necessary. Most pathogenic bacteria are resistant to antibacterial compounds due to their capacity to produce biofilm [4]. The biofilm produced by sessile bacteria is responsible for several chronic diseases [5]. Biofilm is a complex community composed of nucleic acids, lipids, proteins, and polysaccharides [7]
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