Abstract

Although antibiotics can treat most bacterial infections, development of microbial resistance restricts the advantages of the antibacterial agents in controlling infectious diseases. This is a major challenge that poses a serious threat prompting the search for alternative strategies to treat bacterial infections. Nanotechnology as an emerging field has been extensively used to overcome microbial resistance due to specific properties of nanoparticles such as increased drug uptake and high surface area to volume ratio. The metallic particles in nanoscale have demonstrated antibacterial activity against various bacterial species, including Gram-positive and Gramnegative bacteria, and fungi. Recently, copper nanoparticles have been widely investigated for use in fighting microbial infections. This article tries to briefly summarize the current studies related to the antibacterial properties of the copper nanoparticles. The reviewed papers reveal that the copper nanoparticles possess potent antimicrobial activities and can be used for controlling and treating different infectious diseases in the future.

Keywords: Metallic nanoparticles; Copper; Antibacterial activity; Infection; Microbial resistance