Abstract
A green synthetic route for the production of silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) using five different aqueous plant extracts, namely, Berberis vulgaris, Brassica nigra, Capsella bursa-pastoris, Lavandula angustifolia and Origanum vulgare, was investigated in this study. The present work demonstrates the influence of plant extract composition (antioxidant and total phenolic content) on the size and morphology of the produced AgNPs. The biosynthetic procedure was rapid and simple and was easily monitored via colour changes and ultraviolet and visible (UV-Vis) spectroscopy. Subsequently, measurement of zeta potential (ZP), photon cross-correlation spectroscopy (PCCS), X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and selected area electron diffraction (SAED) analysis were employed to characterise the as-synthesised nanoparticles. The XRD investigation confirmed the presence of Ag0 in the nanoparticles, and interactions between the bioactive compounds of the plants and the produced AgNPs were evident in the FTIR spectra. TEM indicated that the nanoparticles exhibited a bimodal size distribution, with the smaller particles being spherical and the larger having a truncated octahedron shape. In addition, the antimicrobial activity of the AgNPs was tested against five bacterial strains. All synthesised nanoparticles exhibited enhanced antimicrobial activity at a precursor concentration of 5 mM compared to the control substance, gentamicin sulphate, with the best results observed for AgNPs prepared with B. nigra and L. angustifolia extracts.
Highlights
The phenolic content is mostly responsible for antioxidant activity, and it was found to be important for AgNP biosynthesis [55,56]
We successfully showed the universality of the proposed simple green synthetic approach for the synthesis of AgNPs with different plant extracts of B. vulgaris, B. nigra, C. bursa-pastoris, L. angustifolia and O. vulgare
The presence of elemental Ag was confirmed in most cases by measuring the X-ray diffraction (XRD)
Summary
Scientists around the world are focusing on nano-bioscience due to its potential in several applications, one of them being their potential to combat bacterial resistance. As a result of the incorrect and overuse of antibiotics, bacterial resistance has become a worldwide problem in the treatment of infectious diseases. Due to the need for new antimicrobial agents that are able to kill or inhibit the growth of a wide range of microbes, the use of nanotechnology in the development of effective antimicrobials is a new promising alternative. The antimicrobial activity of nanoparticles (NPs) results from a very different mechanism 4.0/).
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