Fabrication, Characterization and Antibacterial Properties of MgO Nanoparticles in Zeolite Matrix

Microbial contamination is a great threat to human health. Studies have shown that antimicrobial compounds made from a variety of NPs have high antimicrobial activity. The potential effects of nanostructured metal oxides on the reduction of microbial contaminants are well established. The present study aimed to investigate the antimicrobial activities of magnesium oxide nanoparticles in zeolite matrix on Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria.
MgO nanoparticles were successfully synthesized from Mg (NO3)2.6H2O in large mordenite matrix through a solid state reaction method. The synthesized samples were characterized by XRD, FTIR, SEM and TEM. Disk diffusion method and MIC were used to evaluate the antimicrobial activity of MgO nanoparticles on Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli compared to commercial antibiotic disks.
XRD results reveal diffraction peaks for each of the two compounds in the nanocomposite. The XRD studies show that the synthesized magnesium oxide NPs have cubic structure. Average size of the NPs was estimated by transmission electron microscopy around 14 nm. Based on the results, these nanoparticles have antimicrobial activity against selected bacteria.
MgO indicate strong antibacterial activity related to alkalinity and active oxygen species. MgO nanoparticles damage the cell membrane and then cause the leakage of intracellular contents which in turn lead to death of the bacterial cells.