Synthesis of silver, copper and bimetallic nanoparticles using quercetin and gallic acid: Optical and antimicrobial properties

Gallic Acid is a polyphenol and Quercetin is a flavonoid structure, both of which are quite powerful antioxidants and biologically active compounds. One of the important application areas is the pharmaceutical industry. Studies have shown that these substances have anticarcinogenic, antioxidative, antimutagenic, antiallergic and anti-inflammatory effects. Various metallic nanoparticles (NP) obtained from these phenolic compounds have found wide research area, especially in nanomedicine. As nanotechnology develops, the usage area of these nanoparticles, which have a size of 1-100 nm, is expanding day by day in the field of medical chemistry, materials science and advanced technology products and pharmaceuticals. In this thesis study, optimal pH to form nanoparticles of silver, copper and their different combinations (Quercetin Ag/CuNP, Gallic Acid Ag/CuNP, Quercetin+Gallic acid AgNP, Quercetin+Gallic acid CuNP, Quercetin+Gallic acid AgCuNP) using quercetin and gallic acid were determined. The synthesized nanoparticles were characterized using UV-VIS spectrophotometer, X-ray diffractometer (XRD), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The minimum inhibition concentration (MIC) values of the synthesized nanoparticles against human pathogens such as Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus were calculated. It was determined that the MIC values of nanoparticles obtained from Gallic acid and quercetin were quite effective compared to Gallic acid and quercetin.