Iron-Based Nanoparticles Synthesis, Characterization, and Antimicrobial Effectiveness

Background: Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) has emerged as a significant and pressing public health concern, posing serious challenges to effectively preventing and treating persistent diseases. Developing new antibiotics with different mechanisms of action is crucial to effectively address challenges in treating infections. A lot of work has already been done on mono-metallic nanoparticles to address the issue.Methods: This study aimed to synthesize multi-metallic iron, silver, and chitosan-embedded nanoparticles using a green approach. Iron, silver, chitosan nanoparticles, and a composite of iron–silver–chitosan was also synthesized. The synthesized nanoparticles and composites were characterized through X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX), and Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR) to evaluate their structural parameters. Their antimicrobial efficacy was investigated through MIC (minimum inhibitory concentration), MBC (minimum bactericidal concentration), and well-disk diffusion assays against Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Acinetobacter baumannii, Staphylococcus aureus, Staphylococcus epidermidis and Candida albicans.Results: The size of the Cu-NPs, Cu-Ag NPs, and Cu-Ag-CS NPs were found to be in the range of 32-40 nm size with a spherical shape. The nanocomposites' MIC and MBC were calculated to be 125 μg/mL and 500 μg/mL, respectively. The nanocomposites exhibited a range of clear inhibition zones, with a minimum diameter of 12 ± 0.5 mm and a maximum diameter of 22 ± 0.5 mm. Conclusion: The iron–silver–chitosan nanocomposite has been shown to have significant antimicrobial effects in the laboratory environment compared to other nanoparticles hence can be applied as potential biomedical/biological candidates in future.Keywords: Antibacterial; Antifungal Agents; Iron; Silver; Chitosan; Nanoparticles