Synthesis and anti-ultraviolet properties of monodisperse BSA-conjugated zinc oxide nanoparticles

Abstract A three-step process was designed to fabricate bovine serum albumin (BSA)-conjugated zinc oxide nanoparticles (BZnOs) by using BSA as the structure directing agent. The morphology and crystal phase of BZnOs were characterized by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and powder X-ray diffraction (XRD). The composition and BSA content of BZnOs were measured by Fourier transform infrared spectrograph (FTIR) and thermogravimetry (TG) analysis. The ultraviolet–visible absorption property and ultraviolet blocking effects of BZnOs were also studied. The results indicated that the monodisperse BZnOs with 20.5 ± 3.5 nm in diameter had better anti-ultraviolet activities and exhibited the potential as the sunscreen.