Synthesis of nanostructured Ag@SiO2-Penicillin from high purity Ag NPs prepared by electromagnetic levitation melting process.

Nanostructured Ag@SiO2-Penicillin was synthesized from high-purity Ag0 NPs with a mean particle size of about 10 nm produced by electromagnetic levitation gas condensation (ELGC) method. The silver and penicillin contents of the synthesized nano-antibiotic were about 34 wt% and 2.5 wt% respectively, as determined by ICP-OES and TGA analyses. The antibacterial properties and synergistic effects of nanostructured Ag@SiO2 and Ag@SiO2-Penicillin on killing the Methicillin-susceptible S. aureus (MSSA) and Methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA) bacteria were also examined. The nanoparticles were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Ag@SiO2-Penicillin NPs showed an outstanding antibacterial activity compared to Penicillin and Ag@SiO2 NPs. The Fractional inhibitory concentration (FIC) indexes were 0.54 and 0.52 against MSSA and MRSA bacteria respectively, illustrating the synergistic effects of Ag@SiO2-Penicillin NPs. In addition, Ag@SiO2-Penicillin NPs showed promising dose-dependent cytotoxicity effects indicating the protective effects emanating from anti-inflammatory properties of penicillin.