Nitric Oxide-Releasing Silica Particles as Anti-plaque Therapeutics (2013)

Undergraduates: Amanda Sergesketter, Chris Backlund

Faculty Advisor: Mark Schoenfisch
Department: Chemistry

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Nitric Oxide (NO) is a broad spectrum antimicrobial agent naturally produced by the body to combat infection. As such, strategies have been developed to store and deliver NO for use as a bactericidal agent. For example, NO-releasing silica particles have demonstrated efficacy against a multitude of pathogens. Herein, we describe the synthesis and efficacy of NO-releasing silica particles against putative dental pathogens. Free-floating cultures of Streptococcus Mutans and Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans were exposed to NO-releasing silica particles with similar NO totals and release kinetics (half-life). The minimum bactericidal concentrations (MBCs) of the particles after 2 hours were determined to evaluate the efficacy of NO-release. This study demonstrates the potential of NO-releasing silica particles as future oral therapeutics.