Synthesis and evaluation of antiviral activities of novel sonochemical silver nanorods against HIV and HSV viruses

Abstract

Objective To evaluate the effect of novel sonochemical silver nanorods on HIV and herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) viruses in human cervical cancer HeLa cells. Methods The formation of silver nanorods conjugated with sodium 2-mercaptoethane sulfonate (Ag-MES) was characterized by scanning electron microscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and thermal gravimetric analysis. The antiviral activity of this Ag-MES was examined against HIV and HSV-1 virus replication. Results The characterizations of Ag-MES and physiochemical structure were determined by scanning electron microscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and thermal gravimetric analysis. Approximately entire viral replication was inhibited by Ag-MES at 10 μmol/mL concentration. About 90% of HSV virions failed to replicate in the present of this concentration of nanorods. However, HIV showed more sensitivity to Ag-MES than HSV-1. Conclusions According to the obtained data, the synthesized sonochemical silver nanorod in this study is a promising candidate for further drug discovery investigation.