Antimicrobial Activity and Characterization of Pomegranate Peel-Based Carbon Dots

Abstract

This investigation reports the use of agrowaste pomegranate peels as an economical source for the production of fluorescent carbon dots (C-dots) and their potential application as an antimicrobial agent. The carbon dots were prepared through low-temperature carbonization at 200°C for 120 min. The obtained C-dots were found to be small in size and exhibited blue luminescence at 350 nm. Further, the synthesized C-dots were characterized with the help of analytical instruments such as DLS, UV-visible, FT-IR, TEM, and fluorescence spectrophotometer. Antimicrobial activity of the C-dot PP was estimated by the agar diffusion method and MIC. S. aureus and K. pneumoniae are showing susceptibility towards C-dot PP when compared to the standard and showing a moderate activity against P. aeruginosa and resistance towards E. coli. The obtained C dot PPs were found to be around 5-9 nm in size confirmed from DLS analysis and supported by TEM. The synthesized C-dots were investigated to understand their microbial efficiency against pathogens and found to have antimicrobial efficiency. These results suggest that pomegranate peels are a potential source of carbon dots with antimicrobial efficiency.

Current trends in carbon-based quantum dots development from solid wastes and their applications

“…CQDs are synthesized from a variety of biodegradable sources, such as manure (D’Angelis do E. S. Barbosa et al 2015 ; Horst et al 2021 ), hair (Guo et al 2016 ; Liu et al 2014 ; Singh et al 2020 ), plant roots (D’souza et al 2018 ; Yu et al 2019 ), stems (Vandarkuzhali et al 2017 ), fruit and vegetable peels and shells (Ang et al 2020 ; Atchudan et al 2021 ; Bankoti et al 2017 ; Cheng et al 2017 ; Hu et al 2021 ; Prasannan and Imae 2013 ; Qureshi et al 2021 ; Rajamanikandan et al 2021 ; Surendran et al 2020 ; Tyagi et al 2016 ; Vandarkuzhali et al 2018 ; Wang et al 2020 ; Xue et al 2016 ; Yang et al 2021 ), tea waste (Chen et al 2019 ; Zhu et al 2019 ), wheat straw (S. Liu et al 2021a , b ; Yuan et al 2015 ), animal shell (Gedda et al 2016 ; Yao et al 2017 ), expired milk (Athika et al 2019 ; Su et al 2018 ), feathers (Liu et al 2015 ; Ye et al 2017 ), egg shell (Pramanik et al 2018 ; Wang et al 2012 ; Ye et al 2020 ), whey (Devi et al 2017 ), waste paper (Devi et al 2018 ; Jeong et al 2018 ; Park et al 2020 ), cat feedstocks (Ahn et al 2019 ), soot (Thulasi et al 2020 ; Tripathi et al 2014 ; Venkatesan et al 2019 ), waste oil (Y. Hu et al 2014a , b ; Mahat and Shamsudin 2020 ), petroleum coke (Wang et al 2015a ), sugarcane waste (Pandiyan et al 2020 ; Xu-Cheng et al 2018 ), rice waste (Anthony et al 2020 ; Nguyen et al 2021 ), and wa...…”

Synthesis, properties and mechanism of carbon dots-based nano-antibacterial materials

“…QCS-CD was selected as a target for additional antibacterial research due to its superior water solubility and enhanced antibacterial activity compared to other prepared CDs [56]. Many cheap, renewable, and multi-component biomass precursors, such as figs [51], garlic [57], Artemisia argyi leaves, [58] pomegranate peel [59] and Panax ginseng Meyer [60], contain vitamins, amino acids, proteins, aromatic and phenolic substances. During the synthesis of CDs, self-contained heteroatoms and specific natural functional groups can be spontaneously introduced and retained in CDs, making them one of the excellent candidates for synthesizing antibacterial CDs.…”

Advances in carbon quantum dot technology for food safety: preparation, modification, applications and mechanisms

“…Qureshi et al [91] used waste pomegranate peel as the carbon source (pomegranate peel contains flavonoids, alkaloids, organic acids and other substances, which have insect repellent and antibacterial effects) to prepare CQDs with sizes ranging from 5 to 9 nm, and studied the antibacterial effect of the CQDs. The minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) test for S. aureus, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Escherichia coli found that the MICs of the CQDs against S. aureus, K. pneumoniae and P. aeruginosa were 67, 72 and 84 μg ml −1 , respectively, but there was no effect on E. coli.…”