Abstract
Metal and metal hybrid nanostructures have shown tremendous application in the biomedical and catalytic fields because of their plasmonic and catalytic properties. Here, a green and clean method was employed for the synthesis of silver nanoparticle (Ag NP)-SiO(2)-Fe(2)O(3) hybrid microstructures, and biomolecules from green tea extracts were used for constructing the hybrid structures. The SiO(2)-Fe(2)O(3) structures were synthesized using an ethanolic green tea leaf extract to form Bio-SiO(2)-Fe(2)O(3) (BSiO(2)-Fe(2)O(3)) structures. Biochemical studies demonstrated the presence of green tea biomolecules in the BSiO(2) layer. Reduction of the silver ions was performed by a BSiO(2) layer to form Ag NPs of 5-10 nm in diameter in and on the BSiO(2)-Fe(2)O(3) microstructure. The reduction process was observed within 600 s, which is faster than that reported elsewhere. The antimicrobial activity of the Ag-BSiO(2)-Fe(2)O(3) hybrid structure was demonstrated against Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli, and the nanostructures were further visualized using confocal laser scanning microscopy (CLSM). The magnetic properties of the Ag-BSiO(2)-Fe(2)O(3) hybrid structure were used for studying reusable antimicrobial activity. Thus, in this study, we provide a novel green route for the construction of a biomolecule-entrapped SiO(2)-Fe(2)O(3) structure and their use for the ultra-fast formation of Ag NPs to form antimicrobial active multifunctional hybrid structures.