In Vitro Green Synthesis of Phoenix dactylifera Silver Nanoparticles: Assessing Their Antioxidant and Antimicrobial Properties

摘要

In the field of nanotechnology, the utilization of nanoparticle (NP) synthesis is of great interest to researchers. Numerous attempts have been made for the green synthesis of silver NPs using plant extracts and some methods have successfully accomplished this. This research focuses on using an eco-friendly method for the green synthesis of silver NPs using six cultivars of Phoenix dactylifera fruit extract and determining their antioxidant and antimicrobial activity. These NPs were then characterized by their optical property using ultraviolet-visible spectral analysis. The surface plasmon resonance for these synthesized NPs was observed at 420nm in the ultraviolet-visible spectra. These NPs were subjected to total antioxidant capacity (TAC), total flavonoid content (TFC), total phenolic content (TPC), 2,2’-azino-bis3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulphonic acid (ABTS) radical scavenging activity, ferric reducing antioxidant power for evaluating their antioxidant properties and compared with the results of water extracts of the fruit. The antimicrobial activity was assessed against Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli. Overall, NPs exhibited good-to-moderate antioxidant activity and strong antimicrobial activity. The TAC and TPC of NPs were found to be lower, but TFC was relatively high compared with water extracts. The ferric reducing ability of NPs varied according to the date cultivar and was higher than water extracts in only some date varieties. On studying the antimicrobial activity, NPs showed greater bacterial inhibition than water extracts, and Staphylococcus aureus was more potent than Escherichia coli. The overall findings highlight the potential use of green synthesis of silver NPs for antioxidant activity and particularly antimicrobial activity and may be beneficial for biomedical and pharmaceutical purposes.