Evaluation of the antibacterial activity of nano berberine adsorbed bacterial cellulose material

Abstract

Berberine can be considered a natural antibiotic plant with strong antibacterial and antifungal activities. The problem of bioavailability and poor solubility can be overcome by formulating berberine at nanoparticles, which opens up a vast range of applications. In this study, berberine nanoparticles (BerNPs) were adsorbed on bacterial cellulose forming a composite with the potential for antibacterial material. The properties of BerNPs and before and after BerNPs adsorption were analysed by FESEM, XRD, and FT-IR methods. The antibacterial activity of BerNPs and its composite was examined in vitro by the co-culture method with Escherichia coli and Streptococcus pyogenes. The results indicated that BerNPs exhibited great antibacterial properties against E. coli and S. pyogenes. The optimum capacity of loading BerNPs (50-60 nm) above the biological cellulose was after 2 hours of soaking. The against E. coli and S. pyogenes was over80%.