In Vitro Antibacterial Effects of Gold Nanoparticles Synthesized with Virola oleifera on Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa Strains

Antimicrobial resistance is a global health concern that demands urgent measures. Among several approaches, gold nanoparticles arise as valid alternatives to address this issue. In the present study, we evaluated the antimicrobial potential of gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) reduced with Virola oleifera resin (AuNPs-Vo) on Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa strains. AuNPs-Vo were characterized by Raman spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, and transmission electron microscopy. In addition to the antimicrobial activity against the aforementioned bacteria strains, we evaluated the antioxidant activity of AuNPs-Vo using the Ferric Reducing Antioxidant Power method and the cytotoxicity to mammalian cells using the MTT test. The newly synthesized AuNPs were monodisperse, stable and had an average size of 22 nm. AuNPs-Vo displayed high antioxidant activity, low toxicity and were effective in controlling both S. aureus and P. aeruginosa strains, with inhibition values above 90% and 80%, respectively. AuNPs synthesized using Virola oleifera plant extract are uniform in size and shape, stable and not significantly toxic to mammalian cells, while showing high antibacterial and antioxidant activity.