Table 1.

Mechanisms of antimicrobial action of Ag₂O/Ag NPs.

№	Agent	Mechanism	Ref
1	Ag+	Binding to the SH-groups of enzymes, leading to their inactivation. Violation of the functioning of respiratory chain enzymes, accumulation of ROS in the cell.	[45,46,47,48]
2	ROS	Oxidative stress: genotoxic effect, modification of bacterial proteins in DNA (genotoxic effect)	[49,50]
3	Whole NPs	Direct binding to bacterial cell walls and their destruction	[47,48]
4	Ag+	Genotoxic effect due to binding to DNA	[51,52]
5	Ag/Ag2O hν	Photocatalysis	[53,54]