Synthesis and characterization of antimicrobial crosslinked carboxymethyl chitosan nanoparticles loaded with silver

Carboxymethyl chitosan (CMCh)–silver nanoparticle (Ag) hydrogels with high antibacterial activity against three Gram +ve bacteria (Staphylococcus aureus, Bacillus subtilis and Streptococcus faecalis), three Gram −ve bacteria (Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Neisseria gonorrhoeae) and a Candida albicans fungus were prepared. The in situ preparation reaction involved crosslinking of CMCh with epichlorohydrin in alkaline medium containing silver nitrate to yield silver nanoparticles loaded CMCh hydrogel giving pale brown or darker hydrogels when the silver content increases.FTIR spectroscopy, SEM and TEM were done for the prepared hydrogels. Silver nanoparticles hydrogels exhibited higher antimicrobial activity than virgin CMCh. TEM analysis showed the small size of the prepared hydrogels to be in the range of 9–16 nm in size.