Silver

Biological properties


Antibacterial properties


Silver is a strong antibacterial agent [1]. The toxicity of silver is not well understood, it is known however, that silver complexes with amines, thiols, phosphates and hydroxyls in cell mebranes, enzymes, DNA etc. [1]. Bacterial resistance to silver is presumably from an ability to exclude or efflux the silver ions or in other cases to immobilize silver and accumulate it [1].