Authors : Mansor Bin Ahmad, Kamyar Shameli, Majid Darroudi, Wan Md Zin Wan Yunus, Nor Azowa Ibrahim, Azizah Abdul Hamid and Mohsen Zargar
Abstract: Silver nanoparticles (Ag-NPs) were successfully synthesized into the interlayer space of Montmorillonite (MMT) by chemical reduction method. AgNO3 and NaBH4 were used as a silver precursor and reducing agent, respectively. The properties of Ag/MMT nanocomposites were studied as a function of the AgNO3 concentration. The UV-vis spectra of synthesized Ag-NPs showed that the intensity of the maximum wavelength of the plasmon peaks increased with increasing AgNO3 concentration. The crystalline structure of the Ag-NPs and basal spacing of MMT and Ag/MMT were also studied by Powder X-Ray Diffraction (PXRD). The antibacterial activity of Ag-NPs was investigated against gram-negative bacteria (Escherichia coli, Escherichia coli O157:H7 and K. pneumonia) and gram-positive bacterium (Staphylococcus aureus) by disk diffusion method using Muller-Hinton Agar (MHA) at different sizes of Ag-NPs. The smaller Ag-NPs were found to have significantly higher antibacterial activity. These results showed that Ag-NPs can be used as effective growth inhibitors in different biological systems, making them applicable to medical applications such as in surgical devices.
Mansor Bin Ahmad, Kamyar Shameli, Majid Darroudi, Wan Md Zin Wan Yunus, Nor Azowa Ibrahim, Azizah Abdul Hamid and Mohsen Zargar, 2009. Synthesis and Antibacterial Activity of Silver/Montmorillonite Nanocomposites. Research Journal of Biological Sciences, 4: 1032-1036.