Casein hydrolytic peptides mediated green synthesis of antibacterial silver nanoparticles

A green route based on the casein hydrolytic peptides (CHPs) has been established for the synthesis of highly stable and smaller sized (10 ± 5 nm) silver nanoparticles (AgNPs), without producing any type of toxic byproducts. The formation of AgNPs was triggered by the addition of an aqueous NaOH solution due to the catalytic properties of OH− and/or hydration of the functional groups of CHPs. The 99% transformation of Ag ions (9 mM) in 20 mL reaction mixture into identical AgNPs using substantially low concentration of CHPs (0.3%, wt/v), indicates that the present system is suitable for the “low volume high concentration” nanosynthesis. The AgNPs obtained by CHPs showed the minimum inhibitory concentration at 24.5 ppm against both gram positive and gram negative bacterial cultures with a 96-well titer plate assay. The AgNPs possibly interact with the cell wall structures of pathogenic bacteria, Escherichia coli, causing changes in the cell morphology and the formation of porous structures, as observed by scanning electron microscopy. This eco-friendly process for the bio-mimetic production of AgNPs is a nontoxic and a competitive alternative to existing physical and chemical methods for the production of nano-scale inorganic materials.