Author : Abdul Qayoom, Zunaira Khalid, Rida Khalid, Adeeba Liaqat and Humna Fatima

Silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) have emerged as efficient antibacterial agents with broad applications in modern medicine and pharmaceuticals. Azadirachta indica, commonly known as neem, is a plant that contains abundant antimicrobial compounds. In the context of antimicrobial activity, the use of Azadirachta indica extracts can reduce silver ions to AgNPs and enhance their antibacterial properties. In this study, we investigated the antibacterial effect of green-synthesized AgNPs using Azadirachta indica. The synthesized nanoparticles were characterized using transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and the BT-90 Nano Size Particle Analyzer. Size-based characterization revealed that the nanoparticles had an average size of 16 nanometers. The antibacterial activity of the green-synthesized silver nanoparticles was evaluated using the disc diffusion method. The results demonstrated that the biogenic AgNPs exhibited higher antibacterial potency compared to chemically produced AgNPs. Furthermore, the biogenic AgNPs showed a more significant antibacterial effect while maintaining low cytotoxicity compared to chemically synthesized AgNPs. These findings highlight the potential of using Azadirachta indica-mediated synthesis of AgNPs as an effective and safer approach for developing antibacterial agents.

Keywords: Azadirachta indica, Silver nanoparticles, Antibacterial activity.