# Inhibiting Escherichia coli Growth by Optimized Low-Power Microwave Irradiation—Delivery of Ag and Au Nanoparticles

## TL;DR

This paper shows that microwave irradiation combined with silver and gold nanoparticles can effectively inhibit the growth of E. coli bacteria.

## Contribution

The novel contribution is demonstrating how optimized low-power microwave irradiation with Ag and Au nanoparticles can inhibit E. coli growth.

## Key findings

- Ag and Au nanoparticles significantly inhibit E. coli growth under optimized microwave irradiation.
- E. coli cells can assimilate fluorescent organosilica nanoparticles after microwave exposure.
- Microwave-nanoparticle interactions show potential for impeding bacterial proliferation.

## Abstract

In a ground-breaking recent study, we unveiled the remarkable cellular uptake of 60 nm ZnO and TiO2 nanoparticles by NIH/3T3 mouse skin fibroblasts under microwave irradiation. Even more stimulating is our current demonstration of the potent ability of Ag nanoparticles (147 nm) and Au nanoparticles (120 nm) to stifle the growth of Escherichia coli (E. coli—a prokaryote whose cells lack a membrane-bound nucleus and other membrane-bound organelles), vastly smaller than the NIH/3T3 cells, when exposed to significantly optimized low-power microwave irradiation conditions. Our rigorous assessment of the method’s effectiveness involved scrutinizing the growth rate of E. coli bacteria under diverse conditions involving silver and gold nanoparticles. This indisputably underscores the potential of microwave–nanoparticle interactions in impeding bacterial proliferation. Furthermore, our noteworthy findings on the uptake of fluorescent organosilica nanoparticles by E. coli cells following brief, repeated microwave irradiation highlight the bacteria’s remarkable ability to assimilate extraneous substances.