Spectral, morphological and antibacterial studies of β-cyclodextrin stabilized silver - Chitosan nanocomposites

The aim of the study is to investigate the antibacterial properties and characterization of β-cyclodextrin (β-CD) stabilized silver - chitosan nanocomposite (Ag-Cts NCs). An effective and eco-friendly technique for the synthesis of Ag-Cts NCs in the presence of a strong stabilizing agent β-CD is described. The well formed nanocomposites were characterized by the Ultraviolet Visible spectroscopy (UV-Vis), X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FT-IR), Photoluminescence spectroscopy (PL), Scanning electron microscope (SEM/EDS), Atomic force microscope (AFM), High resolution transmission electron microscope (HR-TEM) and Zeta potential measurement (ZP). The results confirmed that the poly dispersed Ag-Cts NCs are less than 15nm in size with spherical shape and show good stability. The antibacterial activity was also investigated and β-CD coated Ag-Cts NCs showed a promising bacterial activity against gram negative Escherichia coli (E. coli) and gram positive Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) micro-organism.