Silver nanoparticles bioreduction by dittrichia viscosa leaves extract and its bactericidal effects

Abstract

A variety of chemical and physical procedures could be used for synthesis of silver nanoparticles. However, these methods are confronted with many problems including use of toxic solvents. A green method for silver nanoparticles synthesis using dittrichia viscosa leaves extract is proposed. This plant is available in abundance on the coastal Mediterranean countries can replace polyvinylpyrrolidone conventionally used in the synthesis of silver nanoparticles. Polyol method (reflux heating) was used for silver nanoparticles synthesis. The nanoparticles obtained were characterised using X-ray diffraction, ultraviolet-visible spectroscopy, Raman spectroscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and transmission electron microscopy. Compared with silver nanoparticles prepared by polyvinylpyrrolidone and ethanol 96%, the bactericidal effect of silver nanoparticles synthesised by dittrichia viscosa is more efficient against bacteria. No toxic solvents were used in the present work; therefore, it is an environmentally safe method with potential for biomedical applications.