*How does silver work? (According to Sais:)*
There are three mechanisms of deactivation that silver utilizes to incapacitate disease-causing organisms. They are: Catalytic Oxidation; Reaction with Cell Membranes; and Binding with the DNA of disease organisms to prevent unwinding. Catalytic Oxidation: in its atomic state, silver has the capacity to absorb oxygen and act as a catalyst to bring about oxidation. Atomic (nascent) oxygen absorbed onto the surface of silver ions in solution will readily react with the sulfhydryl (-S-H) groups surrounding the surface of bacteria or viruses to remove the hydrogen atoms (as water), causing the sulfur atoms to form an R-S-S-R bond, blocking respiration and causing the bacteria to expire. Employing a simple catalytic reduction/oxidation reaction, Colloidal Silver will react with any negative charge presented by the organism's transport or membrane proteins and deactivate them. Reaction with Bacterial Cell Membrane: there is evidence that silver ions attach to membrane surface radicals of bacteria, impairing their cell respiration and blocking their energy transfer system. One explanation is based on the nature of enzyme construction: specific enzymes are required for a given biochemical activity to take place. Enzyme molecules usually require a specific metallic atom as part of the molecular matrix in order to function. A metal of lower valance in the enzyme complex will prevent the enzyme from functioning normally. Silver, with a valance of plus 2, can replace many metals with a lower or equal valance. Binding with DNA: studies with Pseudomonas aeruginosa, a tenacious bacteria that is difficult to treat, demonstrated that as much as 12 percent of silver is taken up by the organism's DNA without destroying the hydrogen bonds holding the lattice together but this nevertheless prevents the DNA from unwinding, an essential step for cellular replication to occur. http://www.regenerativenutrition.com/content.asp?id=267
