Fighting Multidrug-Resistant Bacteria with a Biogenic ZnO/Activated Carbon Nanocomposite: Zebrafish and Molecular Docking-Based Insights into Biocompatibility and Antibacterial Potential
Description
The escalating threat of multidrug resistant (MDR) bacterial infections emphasizes the urgent need of novel, durable and innovative antibacterial strategies. This inquiry unveils a sustainable one-pot green synthesis approach of zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnO NPs) using Musa paradisiaca leaf rim extract (M.P. Rim) as a natural biogenic agent, yielding biosynthesized ZnO NPs (BZN), encapsulated with activated carbon (AC), forming a nanocomposite (BZNAC). The structural characterization confirms spherical morphology with an average particle size of 45 nm and a corresponding energy band gap of 3.2 eV. From DPPH evaluation, BZNAC offered radical scavenging potential with an IC50 value of 109.45 µg/mL. In addition, in vivo toxicity analysis in zebrafish embryos implied remarkable biocompatibility, with the survival and hatching rates exceeding 95% and statistically comparable to the control group (p>0.05). Specifically, antibacterial studies revealed that BZNAC showed substantial zone of inhibition against Staphylococcus aureus (29±0.1 mm), Bacillus subtilis (19.5±0.3 mm), Shigella dysenteriae (21±0.5 mm) and Escherichia coli (26±0.4 mm) were statistically significant (p>0.01). In silico molecular docking (MD) studies which indicated reliable interactions between BZN, BZNAC and critical bacterial enzymes like UDP-N-acetylglucosamine enolpyruvyl transferase (MurA) and thymidylate kinase (TMK) with binding affinities of -8.91 kcal/mol and -9.05 kcal/mol respectively, signifying the disruption of cell wall biosynthesis and replication of DNA might be crucial in antibacterial efficacy. The present work highlights the BZNAC’s drug potential validated as a mechanistically therapeutic candidate against MDR bacterial infections, warranting further preclinical and clinical testing analysis.