Biogenic selenium nanoparticles (SeNPs) from citrus fruit have anti-bacterial activities

Abstract

Nanotechnology deals with the synthesis of materials and particles at nanoscale with dimensions of 1–100 nm. Biological synthesis of nanoparticles, using microbes and plants, is the most proficient method in terms of ease of handling and reliability. Core objectives of this study were to synthesize metallic nanoparticles using selenium metal salt from citrus fruit extracts, their characterization and evaluation for antimicrobial activities against pathogenic microbes. In methodology, simple green method was implicated using sodium selenite salt solution and citrus fruit extracts of Grapefruit and Lemon as precursors for synthesizing nanoparticles. Brick red color of the solution indicated towards the synthesis of selenium nanoparticles (SeNPs). Nanoparticle’s initial characterization was done by UV–Vis Spectrophotometry and later FTIR analysis and DLS graphs via Zetasizer were obtained for the confirmation of different physical and chemical parameters of the nanoparticles. Different concentrations of SeNPs were used for antimicrobial testing against E. coli, M. luteus, B. subtilis and K. pneumoniae comparative with the standard antibiotic Ciprofloxacin. SeNPs possessed significant antimicrobial activities against all the bacterial pathogens used. Conclusively, SeNPs made from citrus fruits can act as potent antibacterial candidates.