Among many infectious diseases, infections caused by pathogens of Staphylococcus species exert a substantial influence upon human health, mainly due to their continuous presence on human skin and mucous membranes. For that reason, an intensive search for new, effective anistaphyloccocal agents can currently be observed worldwide. In recent years, there has been growing interest in nanoparticles, as compounds with potential antibacterial effect. The antibacterial activity of silver containing substances has been well recognized, but thoughtful studies focused on the effect of silver nanoparticles on bacterial biofilm are scarce. The aim of this study was to assess the influence of silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) with particle sizes in the range between 10 and 100 nm, and a concentration range from 1 to 10 µg/mL, upon Staphylococcus epidermidis strains with different biofilm-forming abilities (BFAs). The studies revealed the highest level of antimicrobial activity for AgNPs in relation to S. epidermidis strains with BFA, and what is more, the observed effect was proportional to the increasing particles' size, and strains not forming biofilm were more susceptible to silver nanoparticles with the smallest examined size, which was 10 nm.
Keywords: Staphylococcus epidermidis; antimicrobial activity; biofilm; nanosilver.