Naik K, Kowshik M
Department of Biological Sciences, BITS Pilani K K Birla Goa Campus, Zuarinagar, Goa, India.
J Appl Microbiol. 2017 Nov;123(5):1068-1087. doi: 10.1111/jam.13525. Epub 2017 Jul 31.
Silver has attracted a lot of attention as a powerful, broad spectrum and natural antimicrobial agent since the ancient times because of its nontoxic nature to the human body at low concentrations. It has been used in treatment of various infections and ulcers, storage of water and prevention of bacterial growth on the surfaces and within materials. However, there are numerous medical and health benefits of colloidal or nanosilver apart from its microbicidal ability which as yet has not been fully embraced by the medical community. These include antiplatelet activity, antioxidant effect, anticancer activity, wound healing and bone regeneration, enhancement of immunity, and increase in antibiotic efficiency. Additionally silver also provides protection against alcohol toxicity, upper respiratory tract infections and stomach ailments. Although nanosilver has been proposed for various topical applications, its usage by ingestion and inhalation remains controversial due to the lack of detailed and precise toxicity information. These beneficial properties of silver can be utilized by using silver at very low concentrations which are not harmful to the human body and environment. The following review discusses the diverse medical applications of silver and further recommends human clinical studies for its in vivo usage.
自古以来，银因其在低浓度下对人体无毒的特性，作为一种强大、广谱的天然抗菌剂备受关注。它已被用于治疗各种感染和溃疡、水的储存以及防止材料表面和内部的细菌生长。然而，除了其杀菌能力外，胶体银或纳米银还有许多医学和健康益处，但尚未被医学界充分接受。这些益处包括抗血小板活性、抗氧化作用、抗癌活性、伤口愈合和骨再生、增强免疫力以及提高抗生素效率。此外，银还能预防酒精中毒、上呼吸道感染和胃部疾病。尽管纳米银已被提议用于各种局部应用，但由于缺乏详细准确的毒性信息，通过摄入和吸入使用纳米银仍存在争议。银的这些有益特性可以通过使用对人体和环境无害的极低浓度的银来利用。以下综述讨论了银的各种医学应用，并进一步建议对其体内使用进行人体临床研究。
