University of Isfahan Journal of Microbial Biology 3060-7647 15 57 2026 03 21 Synthesis and characterization of nano-liposomes loaded with clove essential oil and investigation of their antibacterial and antifungal effects Synthesis and characterization of nano-liposomes loaded with clove essential oil and investigation of their antibacterial and antifungal effects 59 72 30361 10.22108/bjm.2026.148096.1665 FA Armita Aryan Manesh Department of Biotechnology, Faculty of Biological Science and Technology, University of Isfahan, Isfahan, Iran Abolghasem Abbasi Kajani Department of Biotechnology, Faculty of Biological Science and Technology, University of Isfahan, Isfahan, Iran Journal Article 2026 01 12 Nowadays, the development of new antimicrobial agents to replace antibiotics, especially biological compounds, is of great interest. In this study, the synthesis of nanoliposomes loaded with clove essential oil and their use as antibacterial and antifungal agent were investigated. For this purpose, liposomes were synthesized using the ethanol injection method with lecithin as a precursor in the presence of clove essential oil. Their physicochemical properties were characterized using transmission electron microscopy (TEM), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), dynamic light scattering (DLS) and zetasizer analysis. Then, their antimicrobial effects were evaluated against Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus bacteria, as well as Aspergillus niger, Aspergillus terreus and Aspergillus flavus fungi. Nanoliposomes loaded with clove essential oil showed high colloidal stability, with a zeta potential of -58.5 and no sedimentation was observed even after 6 months. TEM imaging showed that the nanoparticles had a hemispherical and homogeneous shape with a size range of 100-200 nm. Nanoliposomes showed high biocompatibility, with 73.8% and 81.3% of human fibroblast cells remaining viable after incubation with 200 μg/mL of the initial and clove essential oil-loaded nanoliposomes, respectively. Although nanoliposomes loaded with clove essential oil showed limited antibacterial effect against S. aureus and E. coli strains, they showed a potent antifungal effect on A. niger, A. terreus and A. flavus, with complete growth inhibition of fungal mycelia at concentrations of 2, 2, and 1 mg/mL, respectively. Based on the results, clove essential oil-loaded nanoliposomes can be a suitable antifungal agent for food and pharmaceutical applications. Nowadays, the development of new antimicrobial agents to replace antibiotics, especially biological compounds, is of great interest. In this study, the synthesis of nanoliposomes loaded with clove essential oil and their use as antibacterial and antifungal agent were investigated. For this purpose, liposomes were synthesized using the ethanol injection method with lecithin as a precursor in the presence of clove essential oil. Their physicochemical properties were characterized using transmission electron microscopy (TEM), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), dynamic light scattering (DLS) and zetasizer analysis. Then, their antimicrobial effects were evaluated against Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus bacteria, as well as Aspergillus niger, Aspergillus terreus and Aspergillus flavus fungi. Nanoliposomes loaded with clove essential oil showed high colloidal stability, with a zeta potential of -58.5 and no sedimentation was observed even after 6 months. TEM imaging showed that the nanoparticles had a hemispherical and homogeneous shape with a size range of 100-200 nm. Nanoliposomes showed high biocompatibility, with 73.8% and 81.3% of human fibroblast cells remaining viable after incubation with 200 μg/mL of the initial and clove essential oil-loaded nanoliposomes, respectively. Although nanoliposomes loaded with clove essential oil showed limited antibacterial effect against S. aureus and E. coli strains, they showed a potent antifungal effect on A. niger, A. terreus and A. flavus, with complete growth inhibition of fungal mycelia at concentrations of 2, 2, and 1 mg/mL, respectively. Based on the results, clove essential oil-loaded nanoliposomes can be a suitable antifungal agent for food and pharmaceutical applications.

https://bjm.ui.ac.ir/article_30361_24dff3f26318c2a326e4905ca6d1a41c.pdf