The anti-HIV activity of biogenic silver nanoparticles synthesized from Centella asiatica extracts

Abstract

IntroductionHuman immunodeficiency virus (HIV) remains a public health threat, despite the advent of numerous potent antiretrovirals. To date, the search for new HIV treatment is ongoing. Green synthesis of silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) using medicinal plants is an emerging technology that can be utilized as antiviral agents for the treatment of HIV. Hence, this study evaluated the anti-HIV activity of plant-based AgNPs using MT-4 cells. MethodsThe one pot green synthesis technique was performed to produce AgNPs using leaf (L), stolon (S), and root (R) extracts from Centella asiatica. Subsequently, the AgNPs were characterized using spectroscopic and microscopic techniques. The anti-HIV and the cytotoxic activity of the synthesized AgNPs were evaluated using the MTT method. ResultsThe UV-Vis spectra revealed the characteristic peak for AgNPs at 420 nm. The L-AgNPs, S-AgNPs and R-AgNPs were predominately spherical in shape with average particle sizes of 16 ± 5 nm, 17 ± 7 nm and 26 ± 12 nm, respectively. Other observations included the end-capping of AgNPs with phytocompounds, polydispersity, negatively charged and crystalline with a face-centered cubic structure. The protection of synthesized AgNPs on cell viability of HIV-infected MT-4 cells were ≤ 10% at concentrations ranging from 11 to 1375 µg/mL, 9–1125 µg/mL, and 2.52–315 µg/mL for L-AgNPs, S-AgNPs and R-AgNPs, respectively. Negligible cytotoxicity was induced by L-AgNPs and S-AgNPs at concentrations of 1375 µg/mL and 225–1125 µg/mL, respectively, in non-infected MT-4 cells. ConclusionOur findings suggest that AgNPs synthesized using extracts of the medicinal plant, Centella asiatica may be a promising anti-HIV agent and warrants further investigation. Data availability statementThe authors confirm that the data supporting the findings of this study are available within the article.