Spectroscopic investigations, antimicrobial, and cytotoxic activity of green synthesized gold nanoparticles

• AuNP was synthesized using pomegranate extract – reducing and stabilizing agent.
• Stability of AuNP confirmed by UV–Vis and HRTEM analyses after one month.
• HRTEM images showed the spherical and triangular AuNP as small as 0.9 nm.
• AuNP showed excellent antimicrobial against various microorganisms and cytotoxic activities.

The gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) were synthesized by using naturally available Punica Granatum fruit extract as reducing and stabilizing agent. The biosynthesized AuNPs was characterized by using UV–Vis, fluorescence, high resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) and thermogravimetric (TGA) analysis. The surface plasmon resonance (SPR) band at 585 nm confirmed the reduction of auric chloride to AuNPs. The crystalline nature of the biosynthesized AuNPs was confirmed from the HRTEM images, XRD and selected area electron diffraction (SAED) pattern. The HRTEM images showed the mixture of triangular and spherical-like AuNPs having size between 5 and 20 nm. The weight loss of the AuNPs was measured by TGA as a function of temperature under a controlled atmosphere. The biomolecules are responsible for the reduction of AuCl4− ions and the formation of stable AuNPs which was confirmed by FTIR measurement. The synthesized AuNPs showed an excellent antibacterial activity against Candida albicans (ATCC 90028), Aspergillus flavus (ATCC 10124), Staphylococcus aureus (ATCC 25175), Salmonella typhi (ATCC 14028) and Vibrio cholerae (ATCC 14033). The minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of AuNPs was recorded against various microorganisms. Further, the synthesized AuNPs shows an excellent cytotoxic result against HeLa cancer cell lines at different concentrations.

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