title: Synthesis, characterization and amoebicidal potential of locally synthesized TiO2 nanoparticles against pathogenic Acanthamoeba trophozoites in vitro.
abstract: Acanthamoeba is an opportunistic protozoan pathogen that plays a pivotal role in the ecosystem. It may cause blinding keratitis and fatal encephalitis involving the central nervous system. Here we synthesized pure and Zn doped TiO2 nanoparticles (~10-30nm) via sol-gel and sol-hydrothermal methods and demonstrated its impact on the biological characteristics of pathogenic Acanthamoeba castellanii. Our results revealed that pure and Zn doped TiO2 nanoparticles synthesized by sol-hydrothermal methods (ranging 5, 10, 25 and 50μg/ml) exhibited amoebicidal effects i.e., >60% of trophozoites executed under normal light at maximum dose (50μg/ml) within 1h incubation. In contrast pure/doped TiO2 obtained via sol gel method showed ~40% amoeba damage. Furthermore, amoebae growth assay demonstrated that Zn doped TiO2 also inhibited Acanthamoeba numbers up to 7days in dose dependent manner. It was interesting to note that all the tested TiO2 nanoparticles have shown maximum amoebicidal effects at pH7 which is quite relevant to amoebic growth favorable conditions. Our results confirmed that TiO2 has inhibitory effects on Acanthamoeba growth and viability. Overall, we reported the amoebicidal and amoebic growth inhibition potential of pure and Zn doped TiO2 nanoparticles against Acanthamoeba due to attached OH(-) groups, reduced size and decreased band gap of sol hydrothermally synthesized TiO2 nanoparticles.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medical Lab Technology, University of Haripur, Hattar Road, Haripur, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa 22620, Pakistan; School of Chemical and Materials Engineering, National University of Sciences and Technology, Islamabad, Pakistan.
authors.forename: Muhammad
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Imran
authors.affiliation: Business & Professional Studies, Engineering and Applied Science, University of Toronto Mississauga, 3359 Mississauga Road N., Mississauga ON L5L 1C6, Canada.
authors.forename: Ambreen Gul
authors.initials: AG
authors.lastname: Muazzam
authors.affiliation: School of Chemical and Materials Engineering, National University of Sciences and Technology, Islamabad, Pakistan.
authors.forename: Amir
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Habib
authors.affiliation: Department of Medical Lab Technology, University of Haripur, Hattar Road, Haripur, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa 22620, Pakistan; Department of Medical Laboratory Sciences, College of Applied Medical Sciences, Majmaah University, Almajmaah 11952, Saudia Arabia. Electronic address: amawan@live.co.uk.
authors.forename: Abdul
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Matin
mesh_terms: D000048:Acanthamoeba / Q000187:drug effects*; D000563:Amebicides / Q000494:pharmacology*; D066298:In Vitro Techniques; D008855:Microscopy, Electron, Scanning; D053758:Nanoparticles; D014025:Titanium / Q000494:pharmacology*
chemical_list: D000563:Amebicides; C009495:titanium dioxide; D014025:Titanium
keywords: Acanthamoeba; Anatase; Nanoparticles; TiO(2)