Hydrothermal Generation of 3-Dimensional WO₃ Nanocubes, Nanobars and Nanobricks, Their Antimicrobial and Anticancer
Nilam Qureshi1, Seungjae Lee1, Ravindra Chaudhari2
1Nano Particles Technology Laboratory, School of Mechanical Engineering, Sungkyunkwan University, Suwon, Gyeonggi-do, 16419, South Korea.
Abstract:
In our current endeavor, 3-dimensional (3D) tungsten oxide (WO₃) nanostructures (nanocubes, nanobars and nanobricks) have been swiftly generated via hydrothermal route at 160 °C for 24 h. Physico-chemical characterization of the resultant powder revealed formation of WO₃ nanostructures with predominantly faceted cube, brick and rectangular bar-like morphology. The present study was also aimed at exploring the antimicrobial and anticancer potential of WO₃ nanostructures. Antimicrobial activity was tested against different micro-organisms viz., Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Staphylococcus aureus, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Escherichia coli and Aspergillus fumigatus. The antibacterial and antifungal activity was ascertained against these micro-organisms by measuring the diameter of inhibition zone in agar well diffusion test which revealed that the resultant WO₃ nanostructures acted as excellent antibacterial agents against both bacteria and fungi but were more effective against the fungus, A. fumigatus. To examine the growth curves of bacterial cells, time kill assay was monitored for E. coli, against which significant antibacterial action of WO₃ nanostructures was noted. The anti-cancer activity of WO₃ nanostructures was found to be concentration-dependent against KB cell line by viable cell count method. In our pilot study, WO₃ nanostructures suspension with concentration in the range of 10-1 to 10-5 mg/ml was found to kill KB cells effectively.
