Kinetics and mechanism of antibacterial activity and cytotoxicity of Ag-RGO nanocomposite

Nowadays, nanomaterials with remarkable antibacterial activity and low cytotoxicity attract much interest in research. By considering the antibacterial activity of Ag and graphene oxide (GO), the Ag-RGO nanocomposite was prepared by a one-pot and facile technique and it was used to evaluate its antibacterial activity and cytotoxicity against Escherichia coli and glioblastoma cancer cells (U87MG), respectively. The antibacterial activity was studied by micro-dilution and colony counting methods to investigate cell viability. The viability of glioblastoma cells was determined using MIT assay. Since MIC and MBC values of the nanocomposite are 20 and 40 pz/mL, respectively, it acts as a bactericidal agent. The antibacterial properties of nanocomposite are time and concentration dependent. The kinetics and mechanism of the antibacterial activity of the nanocomposite were investigated. The antibacterial activity for Ag-RGO nanocomposite is induced by capturing-killing process. From the results, we concluded that Ag-RGO nanocomposite can simultaneously induce apoptosis. Our results bring up a new plan for the use of silver nanoparticles in the form of nanocomposite with reduced graphene oxide in antibacterial applications. Also, Ag-RGO nanocomposite can reduce the viability of U87MG in a dose dependent manner which may show its anticancer potential. (C) 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.