Evaluation of improved antifungal activity of fluconazole - silver nanoconjugate against pathogenic fungi

Opportunistic fungi such as Candida albicans and Trichophyton rubrum are becoming more resistant to antifungal agents due to their extensive usage. A research on new antifungal agents has become imperative due to marked increase in the resistance to antifungal agents such as Fluconazole and Ampotericin B in these fungi. With nanotechnology these issues can be effectively addressed, various nanoparticles can be used as antifungal agents and can be used as carrier vehicles to deliver the active therapeutic agents to the targeted or to the diseased sites without affecting the efficacy of active agent. In this prospective, the present study is aimed to evaluate improved antifungal activity of fluconazole with nano silver, stabilized with chitosan against pathogenic fungi. Silver nanoparticles were synthesized by chemical reduction method. Characterization of silver nanoparticles was done by, FTIR, UV-Vis Spectroscopy, XRD and SEM. UV Absorption spectra at 397 nm show preliminary conformation of Ag nanoparticles. Further, the nanoparticles were conjugated with the fluconazole, which were stabilized with chitosan under optimum conditions and these nanoconjugates were characterized. Antifungal activity of respective chitosan stabilised Ag -Fluconazole nanoconjugate revealed improved activity by 2 to 20 folds against both tested organism compared with free antifungal agent. Present study addresses the possible utilization of nanoformulated fluconazole as an effective antifungal agent against pathogenic fungal organisms. (C) 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.