Applications of ZnO nanoflowers as antimicrobial agents for Escherichia coli and enzyme-free glucose sensor.

Well-crystalline ZnO nanoflowers were prepared by a facile solution process and their applications as an antimicrobial agent against Escherichia coli and enzyme-free glucose sensor have been studied. The morphological, structural, compositional, and optical properties of ZnO nanoflowers were characterized by various techniques, which confirmed the well-crystalline wurtzite hexagonal phase. The minimum inhibitory concentration of ZnO nanoflowers for inhibiting the growth of Escherichia coli was found to be 25 microg/ml. ZnO nanoflowers were also tested as an efficient electron mediator for the fabrication of highly sensitive non-enzymatic glucose sensor, which exhibited a high sensitivity of -411 microA M(-1) cm(-2) and detection limit of -1.25 mM with a quick response time of -10.0 s. The presented studies showed that ZnO nanomaterials can be efficiently used as an antimicrobial agent and a highly sensitive non-enzymatic glucose sensor.