Synthesis and characterization of novel antibacterial Sol-gel derived TiO2/Zn2TiO4/Ag nanocomposite as an active agent in Sunscreens

Abstract

The application of zinc oxide (ZnO) nanoparticles in sunscreen formulations has two advantages: protection against harmful rays of sun and cosmetic attractiveness. Furthermore, in recent years Ag–TiO2 nanoparticles have gained a great in cosmetics and hygiene industry due to its stronger antibacterial effect compared to pure TiO2. In the present study, nanocomposite composed of titanium dioxide, zinc oxide and silver nanoparticles (TiO2/Zn2TiO4/Ag) were synthetized via sol-gel method and characterized using XRD, (FT-IR) and (SEM). Antibacterial properties of nanocomposite was determined using minimum growth inhibitory concentration test against E. coli and Staphylococcus aureus bacteria and toxicity in a sunscreen cream were also investigated. Cytotoxicity of nanocomposite was also assessed qualitatively and quantitatively. The nanocomposite had an average size of 20–29 nm. The analytical results, XRD, FT-IR and SEM confirmed the presence of ZnO, TiO2 and Ag in nanocomposite structure after sintering at 400 °C. MIC results demonstrated the strong anti-bacterial activity of nanocomposite against both gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria. Qualitative and quantitative toxicity tests showed that the toxicity of nanocomposite was very low and it was dose dependent. It could be concluded that this novel TiO2/Zn2TiO4/Ag nanocomposite could be beneficial in development of sunscreen cream with high protection.