Biopelículas de gelana cargadas con nanopartículas de plata: Propiedades físico mecánicas, antimicrobianas y de barrera

Abstract

Biofilms based on low acyl gellan loaded with silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) were tested, evaluating their physical-mechanical, antimicrobial and barrier properties after 3 weeks of storage. The antimicrobial activity was evaluated against food-borne bacteria (Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus) and two fungi (Aspergillus sp and Penicillium sp). The results showed that the storage time influence all the evaluated properties. Increasing the storage time decreases the tensile strength and transparency values. Also, the antimicrobial power and the water vapor permeability increased. This behavior is probably due to the leaching of silver ions, which decreases the number of bonds present in the polymer matrix. Such results are promising and suggest the possibility of using biofilms based on low acyl gellan as a system for the vehiculation of AgNPs for their gradual release while maintaining a sustained antimicrobial effect.