Onychomycosis is a fungal infection of the nails that can be resistant to antifungal treatment, and is associated with persistent infection and/or relapse. With the advent of nanotechnology, various inorganic materials have been developed for the treatment of infectious diseases, since they may present low toxicity and good biocompatibility. The present study aimed to evaluate the antifungal activity and cytotoxicity of silver-based nanocomposites deposited in hydroxyapatite synthesized by the hydrothermal method assisted by microwave. Tests to obtain the antifungal activity of silver nanoparticle combined with hydroxyapatite were carried out in three different concentrations, on strains of Candida parapsilosis strict sensu using the recommendations of Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute (CLSI) M27-A2. Toxicity testing of the nanostructure in Galleria mellonella was used as extrapolation to future treatment studies for onychomycosis. Results proved that nanoparticle of hydroxyapatite and silver has biocidal activity against C. parapsilosis, and in comparison, with pure silver nanoparticle, the antifungal potential was higher for all concentrations. Considering toxicity assays, no one formulation of nanostructured silver-hydroxyapatite showed toxic for Galleria mellonella, nevertheless, face to nanostructured pure silver, this event was observed. The silver nanoparticles synthesized and analysed in this study were found to have stronger antifungal potency never described in the earlier reports. It is clear that the new way of synthesis of the nanoparticle of silver-hydroxyapatite could be used effectively as topic treatment for onychomycosis, considering no existence of toxicity.

Onychomycosis: Antifungal terapeutical potential of nanoparticles against C. parapsilosis