Chinese Journal of Tissue Engineering Research ›› 2014, Vol. 18 ›› Issue (3): 470-475.doi: 10.3969/j.issn.2095-4344.2014.03.023

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Antibacterial mechanism and safety of zinc oxide

Xiang Rong 1, 2, Ding Dong-bo1, Fan Liang-liang1, Huang Xiao-zhong 3, Xia Kun 1, 2   

  1. 1 School of Life Science, Central South University, Changsha 410013, Hunan Province, China; 2 State Key Laboratory of Medical Genetics, Central South University, Changsha 410078, Hunan Province, China; 3 School of Physics and Electronics, Central South University, Changsha 410083, Hunan Province, China
  • Online:2014-01-15 Published:2014-01-15
  • Contact: Xia Kun, Professor, School of Life Science, Central South University, Changsha 410013, Hunan Province, China
  • About author:Xiang Rong, Doctor, School of Life Science, Central South University, Changsha 410013, Hunan Province, China; State Key Laboratory of Medical Genetics, Central South University, Changsha 410078, Hunan Province, China

Abstract:

BACKGROUND: Zinc oxide has shown extraordinary antibacterial effect. But the antibacterial mechanisms of zinc oxide have not been well developed, and the safety of zinc oxide has not yet been confirmed.
OBJECTIVE: To summarize the antibacterial mechanism and safety of zinc oxide based on the current research situation of zinc oxide.
METHODS: The CNKI database and PubMed database (2005-01/2013-08) were used to search the related articles about zinc oxide antibacterial mechanism and safety. The retrieval keywords were “zinc oxide or ZnO, antibacterial”, “zinc oxide or ZnO, safety” both in English and Chinese.
RESULTS AND CONCLUSTION: The antibacterial mechanism of zinc oxide is complex. Zinc oxide reveals its antibacterial power by photo catalysis, zinc ion dissolve out, and active oxygen. But the relationship between photo catalysis and active oxygen is different based on different studies. The safety of zinc oxide is not confirmed, and different studies have different results. Especially for the nano-zinc oxide, some studies have showed that the zinc oxide is toxic. All of these mean much more researches are needed to verify the safety of zinc oxide.


中国组织工程研究杂志出版内容重点:生物材料;骨生物材料; 口腔生物材料; 纳米材料; 缓释材料; 材料相容性;组织工程


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