Due to biochemically
active secondary metabolites that assist in
the reduction, stabilization, and capping of nanoparticles, plant-mediated
nanoparticle synthesis is becoming more and more popular. This is
because it allows for ecologically friendly, feasible, sustainable,
and cost-effective green synthesis techniques. This study describes
the biosynthesis of silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) functionalized with
histidine and phenylalanine using the Lippia abyssinica (locally called koseret) plant leaf extract. The functionalization
with amino acids was meant to enhance the biological activities of
the AgNPs. The synthesized nanoparticles were characterized using
UV–Visible absorption (UV–Vis), powder X-ray diffraction
(pXRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy-dispersive X-ray
(EDX) spectroscopy, transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and Fourier
transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy. The surface plasmonic resonance
(SPR) peak at about 433 nm confirmed the biosynthesis of the AgNPs.
FTIR spectra also revealed that the phytochemicals in the plant extract
were responsible for the capping of the biogenically synthesized AgNPs.
On the other hand, the TEM micrograph revealed that the morphology
of AgNP-His had diameters ranging from 5 to 14 nm. The antibacterial
activities of the synthesized nanoparticles against Gram-positive
and Gram-negative bacteria showed a growth inhibition of 8.67 ±
1.25 and 11.00 ± 0.82 mm against Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus, respectively,
at a concentration of 62.5 μg/mL AgNP-His. Moreover, the nanoparticle
has an antioxidant activity potential of 63.76 ± 1.25% at 250
μg/mL. The results showed that the green-synthesized AgNPs possess
promising antioxidant and antibacterial activities with the potential
for biological applications.