Abstract
In the present work, silver nanoparticles were prepared by using the extract of Camellia Sinensis. The extract contains phytochemicals which are mainly polyphenols acting as the natural reducing and stabilizing agents leading to the formation of uniformly dispersed and stabilized silver nanoparticles. The synthesis of silver nanoparticles was significantly influenced by the impact of the pH, as well as temperature conditions. It was found that at pH 5 and 25 °C, nanoparticles of different morphologies (spherical, polygonal, capsule) and sizes were formed. However, with the increase in temperature from 25 °C to 65 °C but at the same pH, these particles started attaining the spherical shape of different sizes owing to an increase in the reduction rate. Furthermore, for the reaction of the mixture at 65 °C, an increase in pH from 5 to 11 led to an increase in the monodispersity of spherically shaped nanoparticles, attributed to the hydroxide ions facilitated reduction. The prepared nanoparticles were investigated for their antibacterial activity using Nathan’s Agar Well-Diffusion method. It was found that AgNPs prepared at pH 9 and 65 °C demonstrated strong antibacterial activity against gram-negative Escherichia coli in contrast to gram-positive Staphylococcus aureus. In reference to the cytotoxic potency, the prepared AgNPs showed clear cytotoxicity for HeLa cells and showcased a close relationship between activity and concentration as evidenced by the decrease in the percentage (100 to 30%) of metabolically active cells up to 25 µM–75 µM concentration of silver nanoparticles.
Highlights
Over the last two decades, noble metallic nanostructures are being explored owing to their superior physicochemical, electronic, and optical properties in contrast to their corresponding bulk materials[1,2,3]
Silver nitrate (99.9%), Alamar Blue, Dulbecco’s modified Eagle medium (DMEM), phosphatebuffered saline (PBS), sodium hydroxide (98%), hydrochloric acid (37%), nutrient agar, and nutrient broth were purchased from Sigma Aldrich
These observations signified the efficient reduction of silver ions in the presence of hydroxide ions ( OH−) due to increased pH
Summary
Over the last two decades, noble metallic nanostructures are being explored owing to their superior physicochemical, electronic, and optical properties in contrast to their corresponding bulk materials[1,2,3]. Biogenic synthesis of AgNPs has been reported using fungi, bacteria, algae, and diatoms[10,11] Another greener approach for the synthesis of AgNPs is the use of phytochemicals viz., terpenoids, flavonoids, and other polyphenolic compounds derived from various parts (root, leaves, stem) of the plant as reducing a gents[12]. These species act as a stabilizing agent and further impart superior biological properties by synergetic mechanisms because of their inherited nature. In vitro cytotoxicity was investigated against human cervical epithelioid carcinoma cells (HeLa cells)
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