AUGUSTINE O. OKHAMAFE

Pharmaceutical nanotechnology deals with the formation and development of substances of molecules and atoms ranging from size 0.1 – 100nm which can be further developed into special structures and devices with desired characteristics. This study employed green chemistry to synthesize copper nanoparticles (CuNPs) using fresh leaf extract of Vernonia amygdalina. The resultant CuNPs were investigated by UV-Vis spectroscopy. Fresh leaves were collected and identified, aqueous extraction was then carried out on the washed leaves using water at 60°C. The existence of flavonoids, tannins, glycosides and alkaloids in the plant extract actas reducing, stabilizing and capping agents that reduces the metal ion to form metal nanomaterials. The UV-Vis absorption spectra show maximum absorption at 543nm. The synthesized nanoparticles (NPs) were tested for their in vitro antimicrobial activity against the bacterial strain Staphylococcus aureus using the agar well diffusion method and compared with the following test samples (copper salt solution, plant extract alone, mixture of copper salt solution and plant extract). From the result of the antimicrobial evaluation of the copper nanoparticles, the copper nanoparticles showed the highest zone of inhibition
when compared to the other test samples. This is possible due to the nano-dimension of nanoparticles which increases the surface area of the particles, hence leading to increased antimicrobial activity