<b>ZnO nanoparticles activity against the virulence gene of Pseudomonas aeruginosa isolated from patients with burn wounds infection in Al Muthanna population</b>

Pseudomonas aeruginosa has various virulence factors which involve in the pathogen toxicity and invasion. Furthermore, patients suffering from burn wounds are more susceptible to infected with Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Two hundred clinical swabs were collected from burn wounds in Al Muthanna hospitals, followed by routine laboratory diagnosis such biochemical tests, and then isolates were confirmed by culturing on CHROMagar™ media, followed by VITEK-2 compact system test.Fifty strains of P. aeruginosa was diagnosed and then were tested for antibiogram. These isolates were drug-resistant against ciprofloxacin,penicillin,amikacin,gentamycin, cloxacillin, ampicillin, vancomycin, while were sensitive to piperacillin. The gDNA of P. aeruginosa isolates were extracted and then multiplex PCR was performed to detect for algD, lasB, plcH, plcN and exoS genes. The results showed the prevalence rate for these genes in P. aeruginosa isolates were; algD (100%), lasB (95%), plcH (100%), plcN (90%) and exoS (95%). The conventional PCR was used to screen for virulent genes before and after the ZnO nanoparticles treatment as a test to the antibacterial activity of the ZnO nanoparticles against these virulence genes. The results showed that ZnO nanoparticles on gene expression of those virulence genes at percentage were algD (83%), lasB (100%), plcH (50%), plcN (100%) and exoS (80%).