Moringa oleifera ROOT-MEDIATED SYNTHESIS OF NANO SILVER PARTICLES AND THE ANTIBACTERIAL APPLICATIONS

Abstract

In this work, Moringa oleifera root extract was used as the reducing agent in the reaction with AgNO3 leading to the formation of Ag NPs. The formation of the silver nanoparticles was indicated by a visual color changed. The synthesized nanoparticles were characterized using UV-Visible Spectrophotometer, Fourier Transformation Infrared (FT-IR), Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM), X-ray Diffractometer (XRD) and Energy-Dispersive X-ray (EDX) Spectroscopic Techniques. Agar Well method was used in the antibacterial bioassay against two gram positive and two-gram negative bacteria. Optical measurements using UV-Visible Spectrophotometer reveal the maximum absorption wavelength at 400 nm. The Fourier Transform Infrared Spectrophotometer confirmed the stabilization and capping process by the appearance of some peaks formally absent in the root extract spectra. EDX confirmed the presence of elemental silver. Investigations using SEM and XRD revealed that the NPs have crystalline shapes. The antibacterial bioassay showed significant inhibition values with better activity against gram negative bacteria compared to gram positive bacteria. The activity of the Ag NPs against these targeted organisms especially Salmonella typhi suggests that the research if further studied can be a basis for developing powerful antibacterial agents.