Affiliations: [a] Department of Pharmacy, Institute of Chemical and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Kohat University of Science and Technology, Kohat, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan
| [b] Department of Pharmacology, Brain Science & Engineering Institute, BK21 Plus KNU Biomedical Convergence Program, School of Medicine, Kyungpook National University, Daegu, Republic of Korea
| [c] Department of Zoology, Kohat University of Science and Technology, Kohat, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan
| [d] Department of Biotechnology and Genetic Engineering, Kohat University of Science and Technology, Kohat, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan
Correspondence:
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Corresponding author: Dr. Saeed Ahmad Khan, Associate Professor, Department of Pharmacy, Kohat University of Science and Technology, Kohat, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. E-mail: saeedkhanphd@gmail.com.
Abstract: Growing resistance to currently approved antibiotics is posing serious concern worldwide. The multidrug-resistant organisms are a major cause of mortality and morbidity around the globe. The limited options to treat infections caused by resistant organism requires alternative strategies to increase the effectiveness of antibiotic for better clinical outcomes. Recent advances in nanotechnology have enabled the drugs to be used in nanoscale to increase the effectiveness of antibiotics. The use of nanoparticles to treat infectious diseases has a long history in the pharmaceutical market, and the versatility of these particles to incorporate various materials as carriers make it an attractive option to combat the current crisis of emerging antibacterial resistance. Silver, a metal with many medical applications, has inherent antimicrobial properties. Therefore, silver NPs are appearing as one of the best options to be used in combination with antibiotics to increase effectiveness against resistant bacteria. Here, we discuss the applications and mechanisms of silver NPs to treat microbial resistance in light of recent research.
Keywords: Synergism, nanobiotics, drug resistance, reactive oxygen species
