| Summary: | We studied the antimicrobial characteristics of cerium oxide (CeO<sub>2</sub>) nanoparticles synthesized by hydrothermal technique. The versatile characterization techniques were employed to study the CeO<sub>2</sub> nanoparticle structural and optical properties. These techniques included field emission scanning electron microscopy, Raman spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, and transmission electron microscopy. The X-ray diffraction and Raman studies validated the cubic structure of the synthesized CeO<sub>2</sub> nanoparticles with average diameters ~3–5 nm. The antibacterial activities and minimal inhibition concentrations (MICs) of CeO<sub>2</sub> nanoparticles were tested against ESKAPE pathogens (<i>Enterococcus faecium, Staphylococcus aureus, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Acinetobacter baumannii, Pseudomonas aeruginosa,</i> and <i>Enterobacter</i> sp.). Our data revealed that CeO<sub>2</sub> nanoparticles at a concentration of 50 µg/mL generated a maximum inhibition zone against all tested pathogens. However, <i>S. aureus</i>, <i>P. aeruginosa</i>, and <i>K. pneumoniae</i> exhibited the higher sensitivity, while <i>E.</i> <i>cloacae</i>, <i>E. faecium</i>, and <i>A. baumannii</i> were the least sensitive to CeO<sub>2</sub> nanoparticles. In conclusion, our results demonstrate that CeO<sub>2</sub> nanoparticles possess an effective antibacterial activity against ESKAPE pathogens and may be used as a potential bionanomaterial for in vivo therapeutic applications.
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