Cu₂O, ZnO, and Ag/ Cu₂O nanoparticles synthesized by biogenic and chemical route and their effect on Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Candida albicans

Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Candida albicans are two important pathogens in public health due to the infections they cause in immunocompromised patients and with hospital stay, increasing morbimortality rates. Three groups of Cu₂O, ZnO, and Ag/Cu₂O nanoparticles were synthesized and characterized physicochemically and confronted to P. aeruginosa and C. albicans to determine their antibacterial effect. Statistical analyses were performed using Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) (p < 0.001). The structures of Cu₂O, ZnO, and Ag/Cu₂O nanoparticles were spherical, sized 6 nm, 10 nm, and 50 nm for Ag, Cu₂, and Zn metals, respectively. Furthermore, a 100% antibacterial and antifungal effect against Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Candida albicans was observed for Cu₂O, ZnO, and Ag/Cu₂O nanoparticles respectively. It is concluded from these findings that the nanoparticles synthesized by biogenic and chemical route had a good size between 6 and 50 nm and that Cu₂O, ZnO, and Ag/Cu₂O nanoparticles presented an excellent antibacterial (100% growth inhibition) effect against P. aeruginosa and C. albicans (p < 0.001) compared to the control.