BACKGROUND:Most of the silver coating materials prepared using active screen plasma technology in the past do not involve the nanotechnology field.The formed silver coating is in a"thin film"form,which is coated on the surface of the substrate,and the distribution of silver particles on the surface is uneven.Its long-term antibacterial ability is challenged. OBJECTIVE:To prepare nano silver coatings capable of being"buried"within stainless steel(SS)substrates using active screen plasma surface modification(ASPSM)and to observe antibacterial activity. METHODS:The nano-silver coating was prepared by ASPSM technique on stainless steel substrate.Three groups of coating samples were prepared by adjusting the bombardment time(1,2,and 4 hours),which were denoted as 1 h-Ag-ASPSM@SS,2 h-Ag-ASPSM@SS and 4 h-Ag-ASPSM@SS,respectively.The antibacterial activity of the coatings was analyzed by antibacterial ring test and Gram staining.The antibiotic coating samples of gentamicin combined with vancomycin were prepared by using stainless steel as substrate and were recorded as ACNs.Stainless steel,2 h-Ag-ASPSM@SS,and ACNs were inserted into Staphylococcus aureus or Pseudomonas aeruginosa suspension,respectively.The long-acting(84 days)antibacterial activity of the samples was analyzed by coating plate method.Bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells were co-cultured with stainless steel,2 h-Ag-ASPSM@SS,and ACNs,respectively.CCK-8 assay,dead/alive staining,and lactate dehydrogenase activity of cell supernatant were detected.Stainless steel,2 h-Ag-ASPSM@SS,and ACNs were taken after continuous exposure to Staphylococcus aureus suspension for 12 weeks.The amount of residual viable bacteria on the surface of the material was evaluated by spread plate method.Vancomycin drug sensitive disk method was used to evaluate the resistance of residual live bacteria on the surface of materials. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION:(1)With increasing bombardment time,the diameter of nano silver on the sample surface and the silver content in the coating gradually increased.Among them,the 2 h-Ag-ASPSM@SS exhibited the highest surface silver content while forming uniformly spherical nanoparticles.(2)Antibacterial ring test and Gram staining results demonstrated that compared with 1 h-Ag-ASPSM@SS and 4 h-Ag-ASPSM@SS,the 2 h-Ag-ASPSM@SS exhibited better inhibitory effect on Staphylococcus aureus and pseudomonas aeruginosa.After co-culturing with bacteria for 42 and 84 days,the number of viable bacteria on the spread plate method was significantly lower in the 2 h-Ag-ASPSM@SS group compared to the stainless steel and ACNs groups.After co-culturing with Staphylococcus aureus for 84 days and Pseudomonas aeruginosa for 42 days,the number of viable bacteria on the surface of the eluate from the ACNs group was higher than that of the stainless steel group.(3)CCK-8 assay,live/dead staining and lactate dehydrogenase activity of cell supernatant displayed that 2 h-Ag-ASPSM@SS did not have obvious cytotoxicity.ACNs showed obvious cytotoxicity.(4)After co-culture with Staphylococcus aureus for 12 weeks,the residual viable bacteria on the surface of 2 h-Ag-ASPSM@SS group was less than that of stainless steel group,and the residual viable bacteria on the surface of the ACNs group was more than that of stainless steel group.Compared with the stainless steel group,the sensitivity to vancomycin was significantly decreased in the ACNs group(P＜0.001),and there was no significant change in sensitivity to vancomycin in 2 h-Ag-ASPSM@SS group(P＞0.05).(5)The above results indicate that the silver nanoparticle coated stainless steel greatly improves the deposition efficiency of silver nanoparticles on the stainless steel surface and has long-lasting antibacterial properties and good cell compatibility.