Phyto-engineered CuO nanoparticles from gum Eucalyptus camaldulensis : a GC-MS, molecular docking, and bioactivity study

Aims To profile the phytochemicals of gum Eucalyptus camaldulensis and evaluate its potential for the synthesis of CuO nanoparticles (NPs).Methods Gum constituents were identified by GC–MS. The CuO NPs were synthesised and characterised using UV–Vis, DLS, TEM, FTIR, EDX, and XRD. Antibacterial, photocatalytic, and molecular docking analyses were performed.Results GC–MS revealed 21 phytochemicals. NPs showed UV–Vis absorption at 260–270 nm, an average hydrodynamic diameter of 135.2 ± 3 nm, and a TEM size of 83 ± 2 nm. FTIR confirmed phytochemical involvement in NPs formation, while XRD verified a monoclinic crystalline structure. NPs exhibited antibacterial activity against E. coli (25 ± 1 mm) and B. subtilis (16.5 ± 1 mm) and degraded crystal violet dye. Oleic acid showed favourable docking scores with bacterial targets.Conclusion Gum E. camaldulensis is an effective phytochemical resource for producing bioactive CuO NPs with antibacterial and photocatalytic potential.