2 research outputs found
Antibacterial Assessment of Zinc Sulfide Nanoparticles against Streptococcus pyogenes and Acinetobacter baumannii
Background: Due to the appearance of resistant bacterial strains against the antimicrobial
drugs and the reduced efficiency of these valuable resources, the health of a community and the economies of countries have been threatened. Objective: In this study, the antibacterial assessment of zinc sulfide nanoparticles (ZnS NPs) against Streptococcus pyogenes and Acinetobacter baumannii has been
performed .
Methods: ZnS NPs were synthesized through a co-precipitation method using polyvinylpyrrolidone
(PVP), polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) and polyethylene glycol (PEG-4000). The size and morphology of the
synthesized ZnS NPs were determined by a scanning electron microscope (SEM) and it was found that
the average size of the applied NPs was about 70 nm. In order to evaluate the antibacterial effect of the
synthesized ZnS NPs, various concentrations (50µg/mL, 100 µg/mL and 150 µg/mL) of ZnS NPs were
prepared. Antibacterial assessments were performed through the disc diffusion method in Mueller Hinton
Agar (MHA) culture medium and also the optical density (OD) method was performed by a UV-Vis
spectrophotometer in Trypticaseâ„¢ Soy Broth (TSB) medium. Then, in order to compare the antibacterial
effects of the applied NPs, several commercial antibiotics including penicillin, amikacin, ceftazidime and
primaxin were used.
Results: The achieved results indicated that the antibacterial effects of ZnS NPs had a direct relation
along with the concentrations and the concentration of 150 µg/mL showed the highest antibacterial effect
in comparison with others. In addition, the ZnS NPs were more effective on Acinetobacter baumannii.
Conclusion: The findings of this research suggest a novel approach against antibiotic resistance
Screening of potential inhibitors of COVID-19 with repurposing approach via molecular docking
SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) is the causative organism for a pandemic disease with a high rate of infectivity and mortality. In this study, we aimed to assess the affinity between several available small molecule and proteins, including Abl kinase inhibitors, Janus kinase inhibitor, dipeptidyl peptidase 4 inhibitors, RNA-dependent RNA polymerase inhibitors, and Papain-like protease inhibitors, using binding simulation, to test whether they may be effective in inhibiting COVID-19 infection through several mechanisms. The efficiency of inhibitors was evaluated based on docking scores using AutoDock Vina software. Strong ligand–protein interactions were predicted among some of these drugs, that included: Imatinib, Remdesivir, and Telaprevir, and this may render these compounds promising candidates. Some candidate drugs might be efficient in disease control as potential inhibitors or lead compounds against the SARS-CoV-2. It is also worth highlighting the powerful immunomodulatory role of other drugs, such as Abivertinib that inhibits pro-inflammatory cytokine production associated with cytokine release syndrome (CRS) and the progression of COVID-19 infection. The potential role of other Abl kinase inhibitors, including Imatinib in reducing SARS-CoV and MERS-CoV viral titers, immune regulatory function and the development of acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS), indicate that this drug may be useful for COVID-19, as the SARS-CoV-2 genome is similar to SARS-CoV