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Effect of Silver Nanoparticles and L-Carnitine Supplement on Mixed Vaginitis Caused by Candida albicans/ Staphylococcus aureus in Mouse Models: An Experimental Study

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Abstract

The evolution of antimicrobial-resistant pathogens is a global health and development threat. Nanomedicine is rapidly becoming the main driving force behind ongoing changes in antimicrobial studies. Among nanoparticles, silver (AgNPs) have attracted attention due to their versatile properties. The study aimed to investigate the effects of AgNPs and L-carnitine (LC) on mixed Candida albicans and Staphylococcus aureus in the mice vaginitis model. Study of antimicrobial activity of AgNPs evaluated by Minimum Inhibitory Concentration (MIC) and Minimum Biocidal Concentration (MBC) assays. AgNPs inhibited biofilm formation of microbial strains, which was tested by using crystal violet staining. In the current study, we evaluated the effects of AgNPs and LC in NMRI mice infected intravaginally with C. albicans/ S. aureus for two weeks. The proportion of mice in each stage of the estrous cycle (proestrus, estrus, metestrus, and diestrus) was examined. Histological properties were assessed by hematoxylin/ eosin (H&E) staining of formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded vaginal tissue sections. Based on the results, MICs of AgNPs against S. aureus, C. albicans, and their combination were 252.3, 124.8, and 501.8 ppm, and their minimum biofilm inhibitory concentration (MBIC) was 500, 250, and 1000 ppm, respectively. The estrous cycle in the treated group was similar to the control. Vaginal histology and cytology showed that LC can improve tissue damages caused by vaginitis and AgNPs. This study demonstrates the promising use of AgNPs as antimicrobial agents and the combination of AgNPs/ LC could be a great future alternative in the control of vaginitis.

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Acknowledgements

This paper emanates from the MSc thesis of the first author submitted to the Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Razi University 67149-67346, Kermanshah, Iran. The authors acknowledge personnel of the Laboratory of Microbiology for technical assistance.

Funding

This study was supported by the intramural fund.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Biology, Faculty of Sciences, Razi University, Kermanshah, Iran

    Mozhgan Fatahi Dehpahni, Khosrow Chehri & Mehri Azadbakht

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  1. Mozhgan Fatahi Dehpahni
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Contributions

Dr. Khosrow Chehri and Dr. Mehri Azadbakht designed this experiment. Mozhgan Fatahi Dehpahni did this experiment, analyzed data, and drafted the manuscript. All authors revised the article. Microbiological and histological studies were performed under the supervision of Dr. Khosrow Chehri and Dr. Mehri Azadbakht, respectively.

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Correspondence to Khosrow Chehri.

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The authors declare that there is no conflict of interest.

Ethical Approval

In this experimental study, Ethical approval of laboratory animal work was obtained from the Ethics Committee of Razi University, Kermanshah (ethical code: 397–1-03) and mice were kept in the animal room under standard conditions such as 12:12 h light–dark cycle, the beginning of the lighting hour was 8 A.M. and the beginning of darkness was set to 8 P.M., at a constant temperature of 20–22 °C, and free access to food and water.

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Fatahi Dehpahni, M., Chehri, K. & Azadbakht, M. Effect of Silver Nanoparticles and L-Carnitine Supplement on Mixed Vaginitis Caused by Candida albicans/ Staphylococcus aureus in Mouse Models: An Experimental Study. Curr Microbiol 78, 3945–3956 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00284-021-02652-0

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