Results in Chemistry (Dec 2023)
A review on biological synthesis of silver nanoparticles and their potential applications
Abstract
Silver nanoparticles are an important innovation in nanotechnology, due to their high stability and low chemical reactivity in comparison to other metals. Silver nanoparticles have received much attention in biological application because of their unique physicochemical properties. A number of methods applied to synthesize silver nanoparticles such as physical and chemical. These methods commonly synthesized nanoparticles using toxic chemicals as reducing agents. However, in the last few decades, several efforts were made to develop green synthesis methods to avoid the use of hazardous materials. In the present review we describe the green synthesis of nanoparticles using bacteria, and fungi and plants, the role of plant metabolites in the synthesis process. Several biomolecules included in biological extract, such as flavonoids, terpenoids, alkaloids, phenolic compounds, and vitamins, function as reducing and capping agents during the biosynthesis process. The prospective uses of biosynthesized AgNPs in different fields, including antifungal, antibacterial, antiviral, and agronomic, have attracted the attention of researchers.