Populus ciliata leaves extract mediated synthesis of zinc oxide nanoparticles and investigation of their anti-bacterial activities

Recently, nanotechnology is making a valuable impact in every field of life. The recent progress and applications in the field of nanotechnology have extended the role of plants in synthesis of stable nanoparticles. The current study utilizes the aqueous extract of Populus ciliata (Wall. ex Royle) leaves to synthesize zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnO-NPs) at mild temperature. The nanoparticles formation, their dispersion, shape and size were confirmed by various characterization techniques i.e. Fourier Transform Infra-Red (FT-IR) spectroscopy, Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), Tunneling Electron Microscopy (TEM), x-ray diffraction (XRD) and Energy Dispersive x-ray (EDX). In addition to this, the FTIR analysis indicated the presence of important functional groups. The as synthesized NPs have been used for antibacterial studies against human pathogenic bacteria; E. coli, P. aeruginosa, K. pneumoniae, S. aureus and S. pyogene. An increase in the zone of inhibition was observed with increasing ZnO-NPs, concentration.