Abstract Currently, the prime focus in agricultural research is on sustainability and protection of agricultural produce with minimal use of synthetic fungicides. In the present study, silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) were synthesized using fresh leaves of Mentha pulegium (M.p) through a simple, easy, and economical method. The formation of M.p-AgNPs was ascertained with UV-visible spectroscopy that gave a surface plasmon resonance peak at 430 nm. Further, M.p-AgNPs were characterized by energy dispersive X-Ray analysis (EDX), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), dynamic light scattering, and Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy. The DLS spectrum and TEM microphotographs showed that the M.p-AgNPs were small in size, measuring between 4 and 60 nm. Significant hyphal growth inhibition of some selected fungal phytopathogens was achieved after exposing them to various concentrations of M.p-AgNPs. The M.p-AgNPs (40 µg·mL−1) suppressed the fungal mycelial growth of all the test isolates significantly. When compared to the control, Fusarium solani (63% inhibition) and Alternaria alternata (61% inhibition) showed the highest inhibition. Likewise, spore germination was inhibited in a potent manner. Hence, based on the findings of the present study, M.p-AgNPs can be used to create a low cost, nontoxic, eco-friendly fungicide to control the growth and proliferation of some fungal phytopathogens in the agricultural sector.

中文翻译：

---

薄荷叶生物合成银纳米颗粒及其表征和抗真菌特性

摘要 目前，农业研究的主要焦点是在最少使用合成杀菌剂的情况下对农产品的可持续性和保护。在本研究中，银纳米粒子 (AgNPs) 是使用薄荷叶 (Mp) 的新鲜叶子通过简单、容易和经济的方法合成的。Mp-AgNPs 的形成是用紫外-可见光谱确定的，该光谱在 430 nm 处产生表面等离子体共振峰。此外，通过能量色散 X 射线分析 (EDX)、透射电子显微镜 (TEM)、动态光散射和傅里叶变换红外 (FTIR) 光谱对 Mp-AgNPs 进行了表征。DLS 光谱和 TEM 显微照片显示 Mp-AgNP 尺寸小，测量范围在 4 到 60 nm 之间。在将某些选定的真菌植物病原体暴露于各种浓度的 Mp-AgNPs 后，它们的菌丝生长得到了显着抑制。Mp-AgNPs (40 µg·mL-1) 显着抑制了所有受试菌株的真菌菌丝体生长。与对照相比，茄病镰孢（63% 抑制）和链格孢（61% 抑制）显示出最高的抑制。同样，孢子萌发以有效的方式受到抑制。因此，基于本研究的结果，Mp-AgNPs 可用于制造低成本、无毒、环保的杀菌剂，以控制农业部门某些真菌植物病原体的生长和增殖。与对照相比，茄病镰孢（63% 抑制）和链格孢（61% 抑制）显示出最高的抑制。同样，孢子萌发以有效的方式受到抑制。因此，基于本研究的结果，Mp-AgNPs 可用于制造低成本、无毒、环保的杀菌剂，以控制农业部门某些真菌植物病原体的生长和增殖。与对照相比，茄病镰孢（63% 抑制）和链格孢（61% 抑制）显示出最高的抑制。同样，孢子萌发以有效的方式受到抑制。因此，基于本研究的结果，Mp-AgNPs 可用于制造低成本、无毒、环保的杀菌剂，以控制农业部门某些真菌植物病原体的生长和增殖。