SYNTHESIS, CHARACTERIZATION AND ANTIBACTERIAL ACTIVITIES OF CHROMIUM OXIDE NANOPARTICLES AGAINST KLEBSIELLA PNEUMONIAE

Abstract

Objective: This paper consists of synthesis of chromium oxide (Cr2O3) nanoparticles by sol-gel technique, their characterization and investigation of antibacterial activity of these nanoparticles against pathogenic bacteria by measuring zone of inhibition, colony forming units and optical density on solid agar media as well as in liquid medium.Method: The Cr2O3 nanoparticles were synthesized by sol-gel technique using TEOS as precursor. The synthesized chromium oxide nanoparticles were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, UV-Visible spectroscopy and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) techniques. The antibacterial effect of these chromium oxide nanoparticles against Klebsiella pneumoniae was investigated both on the solid agar plates and in liquid medium supplemented with different concentrations of Cr2O3 nanoparticles. The antibacterial activity of chromium oxide nanoparticles was also compared with the antibacterial activities of the standard antibiotics such as ampicillin, chloramphenicol, penicillin G, streptomycin, sulphatriad and tetracycline which were taken in the form of hexa discs.Results: Average particle size of the Cr2O3 nanoparticles was found to be 24.0 nm. It was observed that Klebsiella pneumoniae is resistant to the penicillin G and ampicillin but Cr2O3 nanoparticles shows good antibacterial property. The minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of Cr2O3 for Klebsiella pneumoniae is 2.5 mg/ml. The bacterial growth was monitored by measuring zone of Inhibition, colony formation unit (CFU) and optical density (OD) method.Conclusion: Sol-gel technique is a convenient and easy technique for the synthesis of metal nanoparticles. Nanosized Cr2O3 particles showed an effective antibacterial activity against Klebsiella pneumoniae. Therefore, chromium oxide nanoparticles due to its low manufacturing cost and high effectiveness in antimicrobial properties may find wide applications in various industries to address safety issues.