Rose Bengal-decorated silica nanoparticles as photosensitizers for inactivation of gram-positive bacteria

A new type of photosensitizer, made from Rose Bengal (RB)-decorated silica (SiO2–NH2–RB) nanoparticles, was developed to inactivate gram-positive bacteria, including Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), with high efficiency through photodynamic action. The nanoparticles were characterized microscopically and spectroscopically to confirm their structures. The characterization of singlet oxygen generated by RB, both free and immobilized on a nanoparticle surface, was performed in the presence of anthracene-9,10-dipropionic acid. The capability of SiO2–NH2–RB nanoparticles to inactivate bacteria was tested in vitro on both gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria. The results showed that RB-decorated silica nanoparticles can inactivate MRSA and Staphylococcus epidermidis (both gram-positive) very effectively (up to eight-orders-of-magnitude reduction). Photosensitizers of such design should have good potential as antibacterial agents through a photodynamic mechanism.