Screening Endophytic Fungi of Australian Indigenous Plants for Biosynthesis of Silver Nanoparticles and Evaluation of Their Antibacterial Properties
4 affiliations
- 1Department of Chemistry and Biotechnology, School of Science, Computing and Emerging Technologies, Swinburne University of Technology, Melbourne, VIC 3122, Australia
- 2Department of Engineering Technologies, School of Engineering, Swinburne University of Technology, Melbourne, VIC 3122, Australia
- 3The Aikenhead Centre for Medical Discovery, St Vincent’s Hospital, Melbourne, VIC 3065, Australia
- 4Iverson Health Innovation Research Institute, Swinburne University of Technology, Melbourne, VIC 3122, Australia
Abstract
The increasing emergence of bacterial resistance to conventional antimicrobial agents underscores the urgent need for alternative therapeutics. In this context, the present study investigated the antibacterial potential of silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) biosynthesised from extracellular extracts of four endophytic fungal species isolated from Eucalyptus globulus and Eucalyptus citriodora. The AgNPs were comprehensively characterised using UV–visible spectroscopy, Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and zeta potential analysis. UV–vis spectra confirmed nanoparticle formation through characteristic absorption peaks between 400 and 500 nm. TEM imaging revealed predominantly spherical nanoparticles, with size ranges of 52–98 nm for EG 5 AgNPs, 86–197 nm for EG 6 AgNPs, 56–171 nm for EG 8 AgNPs, and 50–130 nm for EC 2 AgNPs. High negative zeta potential values (−19.3 to −31.7 mV) indicated moderate colloidal stability. FTIR analysis identified functional groups associated with the reduction and stabilisation of AgNPs. All AgNPs samples exhibited notable antibacterial activity against both Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and growth–kill curve analysis demonstrated a marked reduction in bacterial proliferation over 24 h. Collectively, these findings highlight the potential of endophytic fungus-derived AgNPs as effective antibacterial agents.
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BibTeX
@article{sawalha2026screening,
title = {{Screening Endophytic Fungi of Australian Indigenous Plants for Biosynthesis of Silver Nanoparticles and Evaluation of Their Antibacterial Properties}},
author = {Hanadi Sawalha and Simon E. Moulton and Bita Zaferanloo},
journal = {Molecules (Basel, Switzerland)},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.3390/molecules31193505},
url = {https://europepmc.org/article/PMC/PMC13666900},
note = {CC BY},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Screening Endophytic Fungi of Australian Indigenous Plants for Biosynthesis of Silver Nanoparticles and Evaluation of Their Antibacterial Properties
AU - Hanadi Sawalha
AU - Simon E. Moulton
AU - Bita Zaferanloo
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/01
JO - Molecules (Basel, Switzerland)
DO - 10.3390/molecules31193505
UR - https://europepmc.org/article/PMC/PMC13666900
AB - The increasing emergence of bacterial resistance to conventional antimicrobial agents underscores the urgent need for alternative therapeutics. In this context, the present study investigated the antibacterial potential of silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) biosynthesised from extracellular extracts of four endophytic fungal species isolated from Eucalyptus globulus and Eucalyptus citriodora. The AgNPs were comprehensively characterised using UV–visible spectroscopy, Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and zeta potential analysis. UV–vis spectra confirmed nanoparticle formation through characteristic absorption peaks between 400 and 500 nm. TEM imaging revealed predominantly spherical nanoparticles, with size ranges of 52–98 nm for EG 5 AgNPs, 86–197 nm for EG 6 AgNPs, 56–171 nm for EG 8 AgNPs, and 50–130 nm for EC 2 AgNPs. High negative zeta potential values (−19.3 to −31.7 mV) indicated moderate colloidal stability. FTIR analysis identified functional groups associated with the reduction and stabilisation of AgNPs. All AgNPs samples exhibited notable antibacterial activity against both Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and growth–kill curve analysis demonstrated a marked reduction in bacterial proliferation over 24 h. Collectively, these findings highlight the potential of endophytic fungus-derived AgNPs as effective antibacterial agents.
SN - 1420-3049
ER -