FORMULATION AND EVALUATION OF HERBAL PLANT CONTAINING SILVER NANOPARTICLE FORMULATION AND ITS ANTI-BACTERIAL ACTIVITY

The present study focuses on the green synthesis, characterization, and antibacterial evaluation of silver nanoparticles (SNPs) mediated by Acacia pennata leaf extract. Fresh leaves of Acacia pennata were collected, shade dried, powdered, and extracted successively using petroleum ether and methanol through Soxhlet extraction. Preliminary phytochemical screening of the extracts confirmed the presence of important bioactive constituents such as alkaloids, flavonoids, glycosides, tannins, phenolic compounds, and steroids, which may contribute to the reduction and stabilization of silver ions during nanoparticle synthesis. Silver nanoparticles were biosynthesized using different concentrations of Acacia pennata extract with 1 mM silver nitrate solution under controlled conditions. Formation of nanoparticles was confirmed visually by a characteristic color change from yellow to brown and further validated by UV–Visible spectrophotometric analysis, which showed a surface plasmon resonance peak at 672 nm. The synthesized nanoparticles were characterized for particle size, zeta potential, and surface morphology. Among all formulations, SNPs F1 exhibited the smallest particle size (155.74 nm) and highest zeta potential (-27.8 mV), indicating good stability and uniform dispersion. SEM analysis revealed spherical and well-dispersed nanoparticles with minimal aggregation. The antibacterial activity of the synthesized silver nanoparticles was evaluated against Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus using the agar well diffusion method. The findings demonstrated that the nanoparticles possessed antibacterial activity, although the crude extract showed comparatively larger zones of inhibition. The study confirms that Acacia pennata can serve as an effective natural reducing and stabilizing agent for eco-friendly synthesis of silver nanoparticles. The developed nanoparticle system exhibited promising physicochemical properties and antibacterial potential, supporting its future application in pharmaceutical and biomedical fields as a plant-based antimicrobial nanotherapeutic system.