Abstract

Antibacterial Efficacy of Sol-Gel Derived Fe-Doped ZnO Nanoparticles against Multidrug-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli

Authors: M. Musa Mubashar, Rahmeen Ajaz, Aiman Aqsa and Faraz Ali

DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.71081/cvj/2025.055

Abstract
Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a global health issue, and multidrug-resistant bacteria are causing diseases both in humans and animals. Nanoparticles can be considered as a great substitute to cater this evolving concern. In this study, the antibacterial potential of Fe-doped zinc oxide (Fe-ZnO) nanoparticles was determined which was successfully prepared by the sol gel method against Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli. After synthesizing the nanoparticles, several characterization techniques such as X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), and zeta potential were used. The structural morphology of the nanoparticles including size, shape, and structure was described in these characterization tests. Staphylococcus aureus is a multi-drug-resistant pathogen and was cultured from bovine mastitis milk. Similarly, Escherichia coli was isolated from poultry birds with colibacillosis. The antibacterial susceptibility tests were used to determine the antibacterial effect of antibiotics selected to perform this test. Afterwards, the Fe-doped ZnO nanoparticles were tested for their antibacterial activity by agar well diffusion method and minimum inhibitory concentration. The results indicated that the sol gel derived Fe-ZnO nanoparticles have great antibacterial effect against Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli. Statistical analysis showed significant difference in antibacterial results of nanoparticles against the bacteria. According to this study, Fe-doped ZnO nanoparticles can be considered a potential antibiotic replacement for combating AMR.

Keywords: Agar well diffusion method; Antimicrobial resistance; Iron-doped zinc oxide nanoparticles