Abstract
For the past few years, the synthesis of zinc oxide (ZnO) and other metal oxide nanoparticles has been carried out using plant tissues, extracts, and other plant parts. The green synthesis of zinc oxide nanoparticles has many advantages over other processes, and the primary areas of application are drug delivery, food additives, and surface coatings. The use of nanoparticles as an alternative antimicrobial agent in the health and biomedical sectors has increased significantly in recent years. This study explores the antimicrobial activities of zinc oxide nanoparticles synthesized via a green method using Salvadora persica L., which is commonly known as miswak plant extracts, and their potential application in a mouthwash formulation. First, we produced the nanoparticles with green synthesis, and the second was merging the nanoparticles with the mouthwash formulation. In post-production of nanoparticles, antimicrobial activities were screened using the agar well diffusion method on Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, Candida albicans, Streptococcus mutans, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Acinetobacter baumannii, Enterococcus faecalis, Proteus vulgaris. In addition, Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR), UV-VIS spectroscopy, and scanning electron microscope were used for the characterization of the synthesized nanoparticles. In summary, polymorphic and spherical morphologies of zinc oxide nanoparticles were generated. While mouthwash made with NP-3 coded nanoparticles and mouthwash made with NP-9 coded nanoparticles had the highest antibacterial activity on S. aureus, NP-3 coded ZnO nanoparticles and NP-9 coded ZnO nanoparticles had the highest antimicrobial activity on S. mutans. Diverse effects of the nanomaterials were observed; it is intended to lead future research. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s12088-024-01276-9.