Abstract
Over the past few decades, metal nanoparticles less than 100 nm in diameter have made a substantial impact across diverse biomedical applications, such as diagnostic and medical devices, for personalized healthcare practice. In particular, silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) have great potential in a broad range of applications as antimicrobial agents, biomedical device coatings, drug-delivery carriers, imaging probes, and diagnostic and optoelectronic platforms, since they have discrete physical and optical properties and biochemical functionality tailored by diverse size- and shape-controlled AgNPs. In this review, we aimed to present major routes of synthesis of AgNPs, including physical, chemical, and biological synthesis processes, along with discrete physiochemical characteristics of AgNPs. We also discuss the underlying intricate molecular mechanisms behind their plasmonic properties on mono/bimetallic structures, potential cellular/microbial cytotoxicity, and optoelectronic property. Lastly, we conclude this review with a summary of current applications of AgNPs in nanoscience and nanomedicine and discuss their future perspectives in these areas.
Highlights
IntroductionAs shapes, sizes, and compositions of metallic nanomaterials are significantly linked to their physical, chemical, and optical properties, technologies based on nanoscale materials have been exploited in a variety of fields from chemistry to medicine [1,2,3]
Metal nanoparticles have been used in a wide-ranging application in various fields
We present a comprehensive and contemporaneous view of the synthesis of AgNPs by various physio-chemical and biological methods, as well as the mechanism of action based on their unique properties
Summary
As shapes, sizes, and compositions of metallic nanomaterials are significantly linked to their physical, chemical, and optical properties, technologies based on nanoscale materials have been exploited in a variety of fields from chemistry to medicine [1,2,3]. Silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) have been investigated extensively due to their superior physical, chemical, and biological characteristics, and their superiority stems mainly from the size, shape, composition, crystallinity, and structure of AgNPs compared to their bulk forms [4,5,6,7,8]. AgNPs are used in antimicrobial applications with proven antimicrobial characteristics of Ag+ ions These exceptional properties of AgNPs have enabled their use in the fields of nanomedicine, pharmacy, biosensing, and biomedical engineering
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