Green Synthesis of Zinc Oxide Nanoparticles Using an Aqueous Extract of <i>Punica granatum</i> for Antimicrobial and Catalytic Activity

The peel aqueous extract of <i>Punica granatum</i> was utilized to fabricate zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnO-NPs) as a green approach. The synthesized NPs were characterized by UV-Vis spectroscopy, Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR), X-ray diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscop...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Amr Fouda, Ebrahim Saied, Ahmed M. Eid, Fayza Kouadri, Ahmed M. Alemam, Mohammed F. Hamza, Maha Alharbi, Amr Elkelish, Saad El-Din Hassan
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2023-04-01
Series:Journal of Functional Biomaterials
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Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2079-4983/14/4/205
Description
Summary:The peel aqueous extract of <i>Punica granatum</i> was utilized to fabricate zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnO-NPs) as a green approach. The synthesized NPs were characterized by UV-Vis spectroscopy, Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR), X-ray diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and scanning electron microscopy, which was attached to an energy dispersive X-ray (SEM-EDX). Spherical, well arranged, and crystallographic structures of ZnO-NPs were formed with sizes of 10–45 nm. The biological activities of ZnO-NPs, including antimicrobial and catalytic activity for methylene blue dye, were assessed. Data analysis showed that the antimicrobial activity against pathogenic Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria, as well as unicellular fungi, was observed to occur in a dose-dependent manner, displaying varied inhibition zones and low minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) values in the ranges of 6.25–12.5 µg mL<sup>–1</sup>. The degradation efficacy of methylene blue (MB) using ZnO-NPs is dependent on nano-catalyst concentration, contact time, and incubation condition (UV-light emission). The maximum MB degradation percentages of 93.4 ± 0.2% was attained at 20 µg mL<sup>−1</sup> after 210 min in presence of UV-light. Data analysis showed that there is no significant difference between the degradation percentages after 210, 1440, and 1800 min. Moreover, the nano-catalyst showed high stability and efficacy to degrade MB for five cycles with decreasing values of 4%. Overall, <i>P. granatum</i>-based ZnO-NPs are promising tools to inhibit the growth of pathogenic microbes and degradation of MB in the presence of UV-light emission.
ISSN:2079-4983