Evaluation of Antibacterial Effect of Curcumin Loaded Chitosan Nanoparticles

  Background & Objective: Nanomedicine delivery systems are known as potent therapeutictools. In addition to possessing an effective agent of turmeric, Curcumin shows antibacterial properties as well. Curcumin is not water-soluble and it can be solved in water via nanotechnology-base methods. Chitosan is a natural and biodegradable substance that is utilized for the Production of Nanoparticles (NPs) carrying drug. In the following investigation, curcumin is loaded in chitosan NPs and ultimately, the resulting nano-drug is studied as an antibacterial agent.    Materials & Methods: In this study, NPs are produced using chitosan and Tripolyphosphate (TPP) salt. Curcumin solution was loaded in chitosan NPs during their production. Next, the skins of BALB/c mice infected with staphylococcus aureus are treated by curcumin-loaded chitosan NPs for 3 days. Afterwards, in order to evaluate the antibacterial property of the nano-drug, these skin suspensions of mice are cultured in bacterial medium.   Results: Dynamic Light Scattering (DLS) reveals the charge of + 7 ± 2 mV and the size of 160 ± 10 nm in curcumin-loaded chitosan NPs. Moreover, Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and atomic force microscopy (AFM) indicates a spiral shape. Therefore, the evaluation of the optical density by spectrophotometry demonstrates that 75 ± 2 % of curcumin are loaded in chitosan NPs. Bacterial culture shows that curcumin-loaded chitosan NPs significantly inhibited staphylococcus aureus growth. Conclusion: This study demonstrates that curcumin-loaded chitosan NPs can be applied as a potent agent in treatment of bacterial skin infections.