article · Scientific Reports
Researchers developed a functional nanocomposite by synthesising zinc ferrite nanoparticles using Psidium guava leaf extract, stabilising them with citric acid, and immobilising lipase enzyme onto the surface. Structural analyses showed that the magnetic nanoparticles formed a core surrounded by the citric acid and enzyme coating, displaying a crystallite size of around 35 nanometres. In laboratory degradation tests, 0.01 grams of the nanocomposite degraded 96.0 percent of methylene blue dye from a 5.0 parts per million solution at pH 9.0. The material also showed antioxidant action against free radicals. When tested against bacterial strains, the composite inhibited both Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli, achieving low minimum inhibitory concentrations alongside biofilm reduction rates of 88.4 percent and 96.6 percent respectively.
Industrial dye effluents and bacterial biofilms present severe challenges to environmental safety and healthcare. Developing multifunctional nanomaterials through green synthesis routes offers cleaner methods to tackle these issues. This approach demonstrates that combining plant-derived magnetic nanoparticles with enzymes can create dual-action materials capable of degrading toxic water pollutants while simultaneously controlling harmful bacterial growth and biofilm formation.
This early-stage research could eventually enable applications in industrial wastewater treatment and antimicrobial surface sanitisation. Potential end users include water treatment facilities and biomedical device manufacturers seeking green antimicrobials. Because testing was strictly laboratory-based using standard dye solutions and reference bacterial cultures, the technology remains far from commercial readiness and requires significant development, including pilot-scale synthesis and real effluent trials.
AI-generated from the published abstract. Always read the original work before citing.
Zinc ferrite nanoparticles (ZnF NPs) were synthesized by a green method using Psidium guava Leaves extract and characterized via structural and optical properties. The surface of ZnF NPs was stabilized with citric acid (CA) by a direct addition method to obtain (ZnF-CA NPs), and then lipase (LP) enzyme was immobilized on ZnF-CA NPs to obtain a modified ZnF-CA-LP nanocomposite (NCs). The prepared sample's photocatalytic activity against Methylene blue dye (MB) was determined. The antioxidant activity of ZnF-CA-LP NCs was measured using 1,1-diphenyl-2-picryl hydrazyl (DPPH) as a source of free radicals. In addition, the antibacterial and antibiofilm capabilities of these substances were investigated by testing them against gram-positive Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus ATCC 25923) and gram-negative Escherichia coli (E. coli ATCC 25922) bacterial strains. The synthesized ZnF NPs were discovered to be situated at the core of the material, as determined by XRD, HRTEM, and SEM investigations, while the CA and lipase enzymes were coated in this core. The ZnF-CA-LP NCs crystallite size was around 35.0 nm at the (311) plane. Results obtained suggested that 0.01 g of ZnF-CA-LP NCs achieved 96.0% removal of 5.0 ppm of MB at pH 9.0. In-vitro zone of inhibition (ZOI) and minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) results verified that ZnF-CA-LP NCs exhibited its encouraged antimicrobial activity against S. aureus and E. coli (20.0 ± 0.512, and 27.0 ± 0.651 mm ZOI, respectively) & (1.25, and 0.625 μg/ml MIC, respectively). ZnF-CA-LP NPs showed antibiofilm percentage against S. aureus (88.4%) and E. coli (96.6%). Hence, ZnF-CA-LP NCs are promising for potential applications in environmental and biomedical uses.
This page summarises published work. The authoritative version sits with the publisher.
DOI: 10.1038/s41598-024-58840-y
Is something wrong with this record? Report it or request removal.
Discussion
Have you built on this work, tried to replicate it, or seen it applied in practice? Share what you know. Verified researchers and MARATTO™ domain experts can open a discussion, and any member can reply. Contributions are reviewed before they appear.
No discussion yet. Open the first thread.
New to MARATTO™? Create a free account.
