An In vitro Assessment of Antimicrobial and Cytotoxic Effects of Nanosilver

The antimicrobial activity of silver nanoparticles has been investigated in medical fields in recent years, but there are few studies regarding its effect on oral microorganisms. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the in vitro antimicrobial and toxicity properties of nanosilver against two dental plaque microorganisms and Human Gin­gival Fibroblast (HGF) cell line. Antibacterial effects of nanosilver colloidal solution were determined by minimal inhibitory concentration (MIC) and minimal bactericidal concentration (MBC) using microdilution method. Standard strains of Streptococcus sanguis and Actinomyces viscosus were used. For toxicity assessment, MTT and LDH tests were performed under controlled conditions. Different concentrations of nanosilver were pre­pared and their toxic effects on HGF were determined after 24, 48 and 72 hours. The MIC of nanosilver solution for S. sanguis and A. viscosus were 16 and 4 µg/ml, respectively. The MBC of nanosilver was 64 µg/ml for S. sanguis and 16 µg/ml for A. viscosus. MTT results showed that after 24 hours the concentrations of ≥ 0.5 µg/ml of nano­silver solution affected cell viability when compared with control group. After 48 and 72 hours only the concentration of ≥ 5 µg/ml showed significant effect on cultured cell viability. LDH release test demonstrated toxic effect only after 48, 72 hours by 20 and 50 µg/ml of nanosilver. The results demonstrated that beside its antibacterial activ­ity against S. sanguis and A. viscosus, nanosilver mediated a concentra­tion and time dependent cytotoxicity on HGF.