In vitro assessment of PEG-6000 coated-ZnO nanoparticles: modulating action to the resisted antibiotic activity against APEC

• Published in: BMC veterinary research Vol. 19; no. 1; p. 1
• Main Authors: Badry, Aml, Ibrahim, Awad Abd El Hafez, Said, Mohamed I, Nasr, Asmaa A E, Mohamed, Moemen A, Hassan, Ahmed K, Safwat, Marwa M
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England BioMed Central Ltd 04.01.2023; BioMed Central; BMC
• Subjects: Animals; Anti-Bacterial Agents - chemistry; Anti-Bacterial Agents - pharmacology; APEC; Birds; Diseases; Drug therapy; Escherichia coli; Escherichia coli infections; Florfenicol; Health aspects; MIC; Microbial Sensitivity Tests - veterinary; Nanoparticles; PEG-6000 coated ZnO nanoparticles; Polyethylene glycol; Polyethylene Glycols - pharmacology; Poultry; Resistance; Streptomycin; Streptomycin - pharmacology; Surface-Active Agents - pharmacology; Testing; Zinc oxide; Zinc Oxide - chemistry; Zinc Oxide - pharmacology; Egypt; Resistance; APEC; Streptomycin; Florfenicol; MIC; FICI; PEG-6000 coated ZnO nanoparticles
• ISSN: 1746-6148; 1746-6148
• DOI: 10.1186/s12917-022-03562-4

Avian pathogenic Escherichia coli (APEC) are considered a growing health problem to both poultry and the public, particularly due to its multi-drug resistance. Zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnO-NPs) are a promising multi-benefit candidate. This study focused on boosting the antimicrobial effect of the chemically synthesized ZnO-NPs using Polyethylene glycol-6000 (PEG-6000) and evaluating their potential to recover the sensitivity of Florfenicol and Streptomycin-resistant APEC to these drugs in a concentration range of 0.1-0.4 mg/mL. Four samples of ZnO-NPs were formulated and tested microbiologically. The physicochemical characterization showed well-crystallized spherical in situ synthesized ZnO-NPs using PEG-6000 (surfactant) and ethanol (co-surfactant) of ∼19-67 nm particle size after coating with PEG-6000 molecules. These ZnO-NPs demonstrated a strong concentration-dependent antibacterial effect against multidrug-resistant APEC strains, with a minimum inhibitory concentration of 0.1 mg/mL, Combining PEG-6000 coated in situ synthesized ZnO-NPs and Florfenicol induced 60% high sensitivity (30 mm inhibitory-zone), 30% intermediate sensitivity, and 10% resistance against APEC strains. The combination with Streptomycin revealed 50% high sensitivity, 30% intermediate sensitivity, and 20% resistance with a 20 mm maximum zone of inhibition using agar well diffusion test. In situ preparation of ZnO-NPs using PEG-6000 and ethanol followed by coating with PEG-6000 enhanced its antibacterial activity in minimum inhibitory concentration and regained the efficacy of Florfenicol and Streptomycin against APEC, referring to a non-antibiotic antimicrobial alternative and an effective combination regimen against multidrug-resistant APEC E. coli in veterinary medicine.