Synergistic effect of silver nanoparticles and titanium nanotubes loaded chitosan hydrogels for biomedical...

The advent of research on biomaterials has led to extensive exploration in biomedical engineering. Particularly, research focused on hydrogels, three-dimensional polymer networks, has gained significant interest. In this study, an attempt is made to develop a nanoparticle-infused chitosan hydrogel for improved biomedical applications. Silver, known for its antibacterial activity against a wide range of microorganisms, along with titanium nanotubes (TNT), is incorporated in four variations (2.5, 5, 7.5, and 10 wt%) into chitosan hydrogel via solvent casting to improve both biological and mechanical stability. The developed hydrogels are analyzed for their morphology, functionality, and structural stability, followed by testing for antibacterial and anticancer activities. Results indicate that the nanocomposite hydrogels exhibit increased antibacterial activity with increasing nanoparticle concentration, with the largest zone of inhibition against biofilm-forming bacteria as 15.45 ± 0.63 mm on Staphylococcus aureus and 14.1 ± 0.14 mm on E. coli with chitosan hydrogel +10 wt% Ag-TNT loading. Additionally, anticancer activity assessed through the MTT assay showed that chitosan hydrogel +5 wt% Ag-TNT had a reduced cell viability with an IC₅₀ at 82.87 μg/mL. This research introduces novel nanoparticle-infused chitosan hydrogels with enhanced features for potential use in biomedical applications.