ABSTRACT
Background: Antibiotic resistant bacteria can be considered as a main problem in infection management. Zinc oxide nanoparticles [ZnO NPs], individually or in combination with antibiotics, can be considered as good candidates for struggling against drug resistant bacteria
Methods: In this study, Zinc oxide nanoparticles were synthesized using sol-gel method in low temperature as a cost effective procedure and characterized by X-ray diffraction and Scanning Electron Microscopy. Antibacterial activity of 9 new combinations of Zinc oxide nanoparticles and ceftazidime was assessed against standards and new clinically isolated multi drug resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa [P. aeruginosa], in order to evaluate enhancement effect of synthesized Zinc oxide nanoparticles on antibacterial activity of ceftazidime
Results: The results indicated that desirable effects can be seen at 6 and 7 mM of Zinc oxide nanoparticles [60 to 100% inhibition]. Moreover, after evaluation of 9 new combinations with various concentrations of both components, it was demonstrated that Zinc oxide nanoparticles can enhance the antibacterial activity of ceftazidime, against some bacterial strains of P. aeruginosa. The highest activity was observed with the concentration of 20 micro g/ml ceftazidime in the presence of 5, 6 or 7 mM of Zinc oxide nanoparticles
Conclusion: Zinc oxide nanoparticles in appropriate concentrations can be proposed as new and promising candidates for overcoming bacterial resistance