A study on the interaction of gold nanoparticles with sodium sulfacetamide

The present research is devoted to the investigation of a nanosystem including gold nanoparticles in an aqueous solution of sodium sulfacetamide in order to determine the nature and efficiency of their interaction depending on the concentration and pH of the medium. Sodium sulfacetamide is of interest due to the possibility of its use in the composition of new hydrogel materials with incorporated gold nanoparticles for the development of ophthalmic implants. Gold nanoparticles with an average size of 20 nm, obtained by hydrothermal synthesis, were used. The study of the cytotoxicity of sodium sulfacetamide based on the integral index of the metabolic activity of MA-104 cells established concentrations that are the basis for explaining the possible toxic effect of materials impregnated with sodium sulfacetamide solutions. The concentration of 0.1 % sodium sulfacetamide solution after 24 hours of contact with cells and 0.05 % after 48 hours of contact should be considered as indifferent. The effectiveness of the interaction of sodium sulfacetamide and gold nanoparticles was evaluated by UV-Vis spectroscopy, electrokinetic measurements and scanning electron microscopy. Spectral studies of a suspension of gold nanoparticles in sodium sulfacetamide solutions in the range of therapeutic concentrations of 5.0÷30.0 % revealed a non-monotonic concentration-dependent effect of the sulfonamide medicine on the absorption intensity in the visible and ultraviolet ranges. The broadening of the spectral band of the surface plasmon resonance of gold nanoparticles in the presence of increasing concentrations of sulfacetamide and the appearance of an absorption band in the long-wave region were found. The peak shifts in the UV spectra after the addition of gold nanoparticles to sodium sulfacetamide were estimated. An increase in the negative value of the electrokinetic potential of gold nanoparticles under the influence of sulfacetamide from –26.2 mV to –41.4 mV was found. The data obtained indicate the existence of a chemical interaction between gold nanoparticles and sodium sulfacetamide solutions, which makes it possible to determine the conditions of their use in composite materials for biomedical purposes to reduce toxicity and leaching rate.