ANTIBACTERIAL ACTIVITY OF Symploccous racemosa MEDIATED COPPER NANOPARTICLES AGAINST Streptococcus mutans

Introduction: The plant Symploccocus racemosa is very useful in different pharmacological aspects. The copper nanoparticles are smaller in size, which provides a large surface area for the interaction with the microbes. The CuNPs were being tested by SEM, TEM for finding the copper nano particles. The anti-bacterial activity was done to determine the activity of the CuNPs on the Streptococcus mutans.

Materials and Methods: Root extract preparation: Fresh lodhra bark was taken and ground until the fine powder was obtained. 1 g of this powder was mixed with 100 ml of distilled water. The extract was boiled for 3 to 5 minutes in the heating mantle and filtered.

Preparation of the CuNPs: 0.861 g of the copper sulfate powder was added in 50 ml of distilled water and to this; the lodhra bark extract was being added. The solution was kept in a shaker and the readings were taken.

Antibacterial activity: The fresh bacterial suspension was dispersed on the surface of the Muller Hington agar plates. Different concentrations of CuNPs were incorporated into the wells and incubated at 37 degrees Celsius for 24 hours.

Result and Discussion: The diameter of the zone of inhibition was recorded on each plate. The color change was indicative of the formation of CuNPsandwas further confirmed by UV-vis spectrophotometer.

Conclusion: The sensitizedlodhra bark mediated CuNPs showed high antibacterial activity against S. mutans among other oral pathogens. On further studies, these nanoparticles can be used to cure diseases as they can beeffective management of sensitive microorganisms.