Green synthesis and antimicrobial efficacy of titanium dioxide nanoparticles using Luffa acutangula leaf extract

Abstract

The present study deals with the synthesis of titanium dioxide (TiO2) nanoparticles using Luffa acutangula leaf extract and explore the antimicrobial potential of synthesized nanoparticles. The biosynthesized TiO2 nanoparticles were characterized using different spectroscopic and microscopic techniques. The absorption spectrum of synthesized TiO2 nanoparticles were primarily characterized by Ultraviolet visible (UV–vis) spectrophotometer. The functional groups associated with the TiO2 nanoparticles and the Luffa acutangula leaf extract were examined by Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy. The crystalline structure of nanoparticles were analyzed by X-ray diffraction (XRD) examination. Morphological characters were examined by Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) and Transmission Electron Microscope -Selective Area Electron Diffraction (TEM - SAED). Presence of elemental composition of synthesized TiO2 nanoparticles were characterized by Energy Dispersive X-ray (EDX). The antimicrobial properties of the TiO2 nanoparticles were observed to be highly toxic against bacterial strainsare Bacillus subtilis (B. subtilis), Escherichia coli (E. coli), Enterococcus faecalis (E. faecalis), Klebsiella pneumonia (K. pneumoniae), Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) and Pseudomonas aeruginosa (P. aeruginosa) and the fungal strains are Aspergillus flavus (A. flavus), Aspergillus niger (A. niger), Rhizopus oryzae (R. oryzae) and Sclerotium rolfsii (S. Rolfsii). The zone of inhibition was estimated by disc diffusion assay and moreover, minimum inhibitory concentration was evaluated by the micro broth dilution assay. It can be concluded that titanium dioxide nanoparticles manifest a strong antimicrobial action and thus can be developed as a novel type of antimicrobial materials for the cure of microbial infections.