Synthesis of copper oxide nanoparticles from Ixiolirion tataricum:Assessment of their antimicrobial, antioxidant, and enzyme inhibitory activity

In this study, flowers of Ixiolirion tataricum, was extracted with methanol. The extract used as capping and reducing agent to convert copper ions into copper oxide nanoparticles (CuO NPs) via a simple and environmentally friendly procedure. The synthesis of the nanoparticles was confirmed by full characterization. The crude extract and the synthesized nanoparticles were assessed for their total phenolic and flavonoid contents, as well as antimicrobial, antioxidant, and enzyme inhibition potency. The results showed that, the nanoparticles are spherical shape having the size of 5.5–6.0 nm. They possess monoclinic crystalline structure; appearance of diffraction peaks between 31.95° – 69.02°. Energy characteristics of copper observed around 0.9, 8.0, and 8.9 keV, while oxygen appeared at 0.5 keV. Furthermore, appearance of peaks between 718 and 523 cm−1 in infrared spectroscopy confirms the synthesis of CuO NPs. The synthesized nanoparticles showed higher total phenolic and flavonoids than methanolic extract. Copper oxide nanoparticles showed inhibition zone of 2.7–5 mm for different microbial strains, while plant extract in most of them showed no bacterial growth. Both, the plant extract and CuO NPs, exhibited minimum inhibition concentration at 500 μg/mL. Additionally, the synthesized nanoparticles exhibited higher antioxidant potency than the crude extract, in terms of radical scavenging, reduction capability, and metal chelating activity. Contrary, the methanolic extract and the CuO NPs showed comparable activities; to inhibit the activity of enzymes. In conclusion, CuO NPs displayed enhanced catalytic and biological activity over the crude extract, due to their small size and larger surface area.