BIOSYNTHESIS, CHARACTERIZATION AND ANTIDIABETIC ACTIVITY OF GOLD NANOPARTICLES USING THE STEM BARK EXTRACT OF Leucosidea sericea (OLD WOOD)

Abstract

Gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) of the Leucosidea sericea stem bark extract were synthesized through a simple green route. The particles were characterized using ultra-violet visible spectroscopy (UV-Vis), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), selected area electron diffraction (SAED), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and dynamic light scattering (DLS). While the UV-Vis showed a surface plasmon resonance (SPR) at 538 nm, the TEM demonstrated particles with a mixture of shapes. The crystallinity of the AuNPs was confirmed by SAED and XRD. The DLS measurement indicated a hydrodynamic size of 30.58 nm and the zeta potential of -21.4 mV implying the stability of the colloidal suspension. The AuNPs displayed potent antidiabetic activity against alpha-glucosidase and alpha-amylase enzymes with percentage inhibition generally comparable to that of acarbose as the standard drug used. The study demonstrated the potential of Leucosidea sericea stem bark extract in gold nanoparticles formation as well as its antidiabetic properties.