13 - Bacterial synthesis of zinc oxide nanoparticles and their applications

Abstract

Green nanotechnology, an eco-friendly alternate synthesis approach for nanoparticles (NPs) is better than conventionally-employed methods. Microbial synthesis of metal oxide NPs has been successfully carried out and has found profound applications compared to chemically synthesized NPs. ZnO NPs have been used across various fields. Microbes act as biofactories for metal NP biosynthesis. This chapter explains the bacterial synthesis of ZnO NPs. This can be either extracellular or intracellular. Even though different shapes of ZnO NPs are synthesized by bacteria, their size control is still an issue. The roles of microbial extracts in the bioreduction mechanism for the formation of ZnO NPs have also been discussed. Moreover, this chapter also sheds light on the different applications of ZnO NPs. They find immense applications as antimicrobial agents, in the field of agriculture, food safety. The interactions of nanomaterials within the body have shown some level of toxicity that is under study.