Bactericidal Activity Study of ZrO-AgO Nanoparticles.

In view of the continuous resistance to antibacterial agents by bacteria and the existing problems of silver nanoparticles as an antibacterial agent, this study reports on the synthesis of pure zirconium oxide, silver oxide, and ZrO-AgO nanoparticles by sol-gel method. The nanoparticles were analyzed and tested for their antibacterial activity against gram-positive bacteria of , , , and gram-negative of , and . X-ray diffraction showed the monoclinic ZrO, cubic AgO, and peaks corresponding to ZrO and AgO in their mixed samples. Scanning electron microscopy showed spherically shaped nanoparticles while dynamic light scattering analysis showed ZrO (76 nm), AgO (50 nm), and ZrO-AgO samples between 14 and 42 nm. The Fourier Transformed Infrared spectroscopy spectra of ZrO gave bands at 480 cm to 750 cm (M-O stretching) with AgO at 580 cm, while ZrO-AgO samples showed bands at 760 cm. The screening by agar diffusion assay revealed a pronounced increase in the antibacterial activity of ZrO-AgO against all the tested bacteria when compared with the pure ZrO and AgO. The improved antibacterial activity of ZrO-AgO largely results from the chemical stability conferred on it by the ZrO as observed from the zeta potential measurement.