Radiation-induced synthesis of silver nanocomposites and their antibacterial applications

The global rise of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) poses a severe threat to public health, with multidrug-resistant pathogens undermining the efficacy of conventional antibiotics. Silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) have emerged as promising broad-spectrum antimicrobial agents. Here, we report a gamma radiation-assisted green synthesis of polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) or polyvinyl alcohol (PVA)-stabilized AgNPs, enabling rapid, sterile production of highly pure, uniformly dispersed nanoparticles without toxic byproducts, adapted for biomedical applications. Notably, AgNPs derived from Ag₂SO₄ precursor exhibited superior optical properties, and smaller homogeneous particle sizes compared to those from conventional AgNO₃. Optimized PVP-AgNPs demonstrated a well-known surface plasmon resonance near 396 nm, with sizes in the range of 5-25 nm as observed by transmission electron microscope, and a hydrodynamic diameter of ~ 33 nm. The physicochemical characterization of AgNPs was performed via different techniques such as X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and powder X-ray diffraction. Importantly, PVP-/PVA-AgNPs displayed potent antibacterial activity, with minimum inhibitory concentrations of ~ 1 and 1-2 mg/L against Staphylococcus aureus, respectively, and 0.5 mg/L against Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Escherichia coli. These findings highlight the potential of green, radiation-synthesized AgNPs as a promising platform for next-generation antimicrobial materials in medical applications.