Bryophyllum pinnatum mediated synthesis of zinc oxide nanoparticles: characterization and application as biocontrol agents for multi-drug-resistant uropathogens

The emerging era of antimicrobial resistance has become a challenge for the potentiality of current antibiotic therapy, making the treatment of several diseases, including urinary tract infections (UTIs) very chaotic. To combat the present circumstances, there is an urge among the scientific community to find efficient substitutes for antibiotic therapy, which may potentially delimit the antimicrobial resistance among the various uropathogens. In this direction, the upcoming field of nanotechnology holds a high potential. Therefore, the present study aimed at the evaluation of the antimicrobial potential of green synthesized zinc oxide nanoparticles. The nanoparticles were synthesized using Bryophyllum pinnatum plant leaf extract and were characterized with the help of several analytical techniques. A sharp peak obtained at 369 nm by UV-Visible spectroscopy affirmed the synthesis of Bryophyllum- ZnO nanoparticles, and the FTIR spectroscopy confirmed the conjugation of different phytochemicals. XRD analysis revealed the crystallinity and hexagonal conformation, and through SEM and HR-TEM, the particle size of the synthesized Bryophyllum- ZnO nanoparticles was found to be between 14-35 nm. The synthesized green nanoparticles, when tested against a few highly MDR uropathogenic bacteria (E. coli, E. furgusonii, K. pneumoniae, S. flexneri, and P. aeruginosa), were observed to exhibit high antimicrobial response (zones of inhibition ranging between 22 mm to 28 mm), thus confirming that these were bestowed with potent antimicrobial ability. Hence, from the present work, it could be concluded that Bryophyllum- ZnO nanoparticles can be used as potential nanoantibiotic sources to deal with UTIs.