Three student pharmacists at the University of Hawaii at Hilo Daniel K. Inouye College of Pharmacy are conducting research with an extract from a locally grown plant as a tool to combat antimicrobial resistance, which in recent years has become a global threat to public health.
Alyssa Kam, Yang Xu and Chae Min Lee have been working under the supervision of professors Leng Chee Chang, Ph.D. and Supakit Wongwiwatthananukit, Pharm.D., Ph.D. to synthesize silver nanoparticles using extract from Physalis peruviana, known locally as poha berry, and evaluate its antibacterial activity.
“Our research focuses on safely, efficiently and economically translating new therapeutic agents from natural products,” Wongwiwatthananukit said in a press release. “Application of nanotechnology in pharmacy (nanopharmacy) enhances the bench-to-bedside approach to patient care.
“Specifically, green synthesis of metal nanoparticles using plant extracts ensures clean, nontoxic and eco-friendly production. Poha berries have been widely used in traditional medicine since pre-Columbian times, particularly to treat cancer. The fruit is popular in Hawaii and is eaten fresh or used for making jam.”
Misuse and overprescribing of antibiotics are the main factors leading to antimicrobial resistance, said Kam.
“That’s why it’s important to identify alternative compounds with antimicrobial activity, especially plant-based compounds,” she said.
Undetectable by the human eye, a nanoparticle is a particle of matter between 1 and 100 nanometers in diameter. Silver is widely used for nanoparticles as an innovative method of drug delivery.
“Our research results showed the synthesized silver nanoparticles using the (poha berry) extract demonstrated good antibacterial activity against Gram-negative E. coli and one of the Gram-positive Methicillin-sensitive S. aureus bacteria strains that we tested, both which exist here in Hawaii,” said Chang. “The next step is to determine the optimal and functional nanoparticle sizes that also have good stability properties.”
The three second-year students presented the results of their research at the John A. Burns School of Medicine Biomedical Sciences and Health Disparities Symposium held April 21 at the University of Hawaii Cancer Center on Oahu.