2.8 Test Microorganisms
The antimicrobial activity of the nanocomposite hydrogel was tested against 8 test microorganisms. They were previously identified as Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA),Bacillus cereus , Escherichia coli , Acinetobacter baumannii , Pseudomonas aeruginosa , Proteus mirabilis ,Candida albicans , and Candida utilis . The test microorganisms were previously isolated from patients with chronic wounds at Hospital Seberang Jaya, Pulau Pinang, Malaysia. The test microorganisms were sub-cultured on nutrient agar for every 2 weeks in order to maintain its viability. To prepare the microbial inoculums, a loopful of microbial colonies using a wire loop into 5 ml of sterile distilled water. Then, the inoculum was mixed vigorously. The turbidity of the suspensions was adjusted match to 0.5 McFarland standard. The final inoculum size of bacteria was 1× 108 cfu/mL and 1× 106 cfu/mL for yeast.