TY - JOUR
TI - Silver nanoparticles using eucalyptus or willow extracts (AgNPs) as contact lens hydrogel components to reduce the risk of microbial infection
AU - Rossos, A.K.
AU - Banti, C.N.
AU - Raptis, P.K.
AU - Papachristodoulou, C.
AU - Sainis, I.
AU - Zoumpoulakis, P.
AU - Mavromoustakos, T.
AU - Hadjikakou, S.K.
JO - Molecules
PY - 2021
VL - 26
TODO - 16
SP - null
PB - MDPI AG
SN - 1420-3049
TODO - 10.3390/molecules26165022
TODO - antiinfective agent;  metal nanoparticle;  plant extract;  silver, chemistry;  contact lens;  Eucalyptus;  human;  hydrogel;  microbial sensitivity test;  microbiology;  synthesis;  willow, Anti-Bacterial Agents;  Contact Lenses;  Eucalyptus;  Humans;  Hydrogels;  Metal Nanoparticles;  Microbial Sensitivity Tests;  Plant Extracts;  Salix;  Silver
TODO - Eucalyptus leaves (ELE) and willow bark (WBE) extracts were utilized towards the formation of silver nanoparticles (AgNPs(ELE), AgNPs(WBE)). AgNPs(ELE) and AgNPs(WBE) were dispersed in polymer hydrogels to create pHEMA@AgNPs(ELE)_2 and pHEMA@AgNPs(WBE)_2 using hydroxyethyl-methacrylate (HEMA). The materials were characterized in a solid state by X-ray fluorescence (XRF) spectroscopy, X-ray powder diffraction analysis (XRPD), thermogravimetric differential thermal analysis (TG-DTA), differential scanning calorimetry (DTG/DSC) and attenuated total reflection spectroscopy (ATR-FTIR) and ultraviolet visible (UV-vis) spectroscopy in solution. The antimicrobial potential of the materials was investigated against the Gram-negative bacterial strain Pseudomonas aeruginosa (P. aeruginosa) and the Gram-positive bacterial strain of the genus Staphylococcus epidermidis (S. epidermidis) and Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus), which are involved in microbial keratitis. The percentage of bacterial viability of P. aeruginosa and S. epidermidis upon their incubation over the pHEMA@AgNPs(ELE)_2 discs is interestingly low (28.3 and 6.8% respectively), while the inhibition zones (IZ) formed are 12.3 ± 1.7 and 13.2 ± 1.2 mm, respectively. No in vitro toxicity of this material towards human corneal epithelial cells (HCEC) was detected. Despite its low performance against S. aureus, pHEMA@AgNPs(ELE)_2 could be an efficient candidate towards the development of contact lenses that reduces microbial infection risk. © 2021 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.
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