Ficus Fruit-mediated Biosynthesis of Silver Nanoparticles and their Antibacterial Activity Against Antibiotic Resistant E. coli Strains

Plant mediated biosynthesis of metallic nanoparticles is an emerging field and these nanoparticles have very high commercial value due to their wide applicability in an array of fields including nanomedicine. In the present study, we report for the first time the green synthesis of silver nanoparticles using fruit extract of Ficus benghalensis and which are characterized using the techniques UV–Vis, FT-IR, Particle size and Zeta potential. Treating the fruit extract with the 1mM solution of silver nitrate resulted in the formation of silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) and the localized surface plasmon resonance of the formed AgNPs showed a peak at 402 nm in the UV-Vis spectrum. Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopic (FT-IR) studies revealed the functional groups present in the fruit extract and the responsible molecules for the reduction and stabilization of AgNPs. The average particle size was found to be 70nm to 90nm ±10nm and the negative zeta potential -33.8 mV was recorded as an indication of high polydispersity of the formed AgNPs. Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) coupled with X-ray Energy Dispersive Spectroscopy (EDX) data reveals that the AgNPs are uniformly spherical in shape. It is further confirmed by Transmission electron microscopy analysis (TEM). The EDX data shows very strong silver signal and weak signals to other elements. The synthesized silver nanoparticles were found to be effective as antimicrobial agents against some important pathogenic microorganisms which point to the suitability of these AgNPs for biomedical applications.