Effect of water storage in silver container on the viability of enteric bacterial pathogens

Silver is one of the heavy metals traditionally played major role in the human life. It is used in the form of ornaments or as containers to store or drink water and other consumable liquids. The study was designed to observe the effect of water storage in silver containers on enteric pathogens. Three sets of sterile silver, stainless steel and glass metal screw capped containers were filled with non-chlorinated sterilized well water. One each of the three sets was inoculated with enteric pathogens viz. Shigella dysenteriae, Vibrio cholerae O1 and Salmonella typhi cultures drawn from the laboratory stock and incubated at 37 degrees C for varying periods. Preliminary findings of this study indicated that silver is bactericidal within an hour to Shigella dysenteriae, Vibrio cholerae O1 and Salmonella typhi which cause life-threatening enteric human diseases. The quantity of silver needed to eliminate these bacteria was found to be less than 2.5 ug/dl at pH 6.5. This study reveals the potential for silver containers to be used to disinfect natural water in areas of poor hygiene and sanitation where groundwater is the main source of drinking water.