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    Anticancer activity of silver nanoparticles embedded in porous starch as a potential delivery system
    (2024-05) Mohan, Naaznee; Mellem, John Jason
    Silver nanoparticles have been proven to have anticancer abilities but they have been known to agglomerate and become toxic. Therefore, various studies have been conducted to explore ways of preventing aggregation using biopolymers such as starch. This study makes use of Lablab purpureus (hyacinth bean) porous starch to biosynthesize and encapsulate silver nanoparticles and then test its anticancer potential. Porous starches were produced from hyacinth bean using three different techniques. These were compared against the native starch with silver nanoparticles, then synthesized and encapsulated using the porous starch. In comparison to the native starch, the porous starches made through solvent exchange and enzyme hydrolysis had similar outcomes with granules exhibiting pores, as shown by the structural and chemical characteristics. The lack of pasting properties and extremely distinct chemical and structural graphs of the porous starch, produced by freeze-thaw procedures, may be related to the presence of mercaptosuccinic acid. It was decided to employ porous starch made by solvent-exchange (SE) for the manufacture of silver nanoparticles as it contained resistant starch. Nanoparticles were produced using the porous starch from solvent-exchange, characterised and tested for their anticancer potential. Silver nanoparticles were indicative of a colour change from clear to brown, as well as, the characteristic peak at 425 nm for silver nanoparticle formation. Silver nanoparticles were implanted into porous starch at a size of around 50 nm, as further evidenced by the particle size distribution and TEM images of spherical granules with dark spots within. The zeta potential for the silver nanoparticles was -34 mV, thereby indicating that aggregation was minimized and particles were stable. The nanoparticles demonstrated less cytotoxicity in the human colon (CACO) and cervical (HELA) cancer cell lines, but more inhibition in the human breast (MCF-7) cancer cell line than the positive control camptothecin. The human muscle (C2C12), normal cell line's capacity to sustain cell viability for silver nanoparticles demonstrated that AgNP were not toxic. However, to maximize the potential of the silver nanoparticles implanted in porous starch, more research is necessary.
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    Biocatalytic and biological activities of cassia occidentalis mediated silver nanoparticles
    (College of Graduate Studies, Walailak University, 2022-01-01) Singh, Shashika; Mohanlall, Viresh
    Silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) were synthesized using the leaf extracts from Cassia occidentalis. The reactions were marked by a distinct colour change and the formation of AgNPs was monitored by measuring the UV-Vis spectra. The morphology and crystalline phase of the metal nanoparticles were determined using Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM) and Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) with Energy Dispersive X-ray analysis (EDX) and Fourier-Transform-Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR). The biocatalytic activity of the AgNPs against nitrifying compounds was determined using 4-nitrophenol and 4-nitroalanine. The biological screening involved analyzing the AgNPs effectiveness against gram-negative and gram-positive bacteria (Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Bacillus cereus and Enterococcus faecalis). The AgNPs displayed minimal inhibition at low concentrations ranging from 25 to 50 μg/mL. The toxicity of the AgNPs was tested using the brine shrimp assay and was observed as non-toxic with a nearly zero mortality rate. The AgNPs exhibited an antioxidant potential of 70.90 % inhibition at 1000 µg/mL. C. occidentalis is noted as a potential bioresource for synthesizing AgNPs with applications as antibacterial, antioxidant and biocatalytic agents. HIGHLIGHTS The addition of Ag nanoparticles to C. occidentalis plant extracts resulted in the formation of AgNPs-C. occidentalis complexes The AgNPs-C. occidentalis complexes were characterized using Transmission Electron Microscopy, Scanning Electron Microscopy with EDX, UV-Vis spectrophotometry and IR spectroscopy These AgNPs-C. occidentalis complexes were very stable and showed antibacterial activity against a range of tested gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria at low doses, thus proving to be good antimicrobial agents The AgNPs-C. occidentalis complexes showed higher scavenging activity than leaf extracts of C. occidentalis. The AgNPs have increased catalytic ability for the reduction of 4-nitrophenol and 4-nitroalanine after a 30 min time interval GRAPHICAL ABSTRACT
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    Green synthesis of metal nanoparticles for antimicrobial activity
    (IntechOpen, 2021-06-09) Moodley, Jerushka S.; Krishna, Suresh Babu Naidu; Pillay, Karen; Govender, Patrick; Karthikeyan, Krishnamoorthy
    The development and extensive spread of multi-drug resistant bacteria are considered as a major public health concern. Failures to control severe infections due to antibiotic resistance have augmented healthcare costs as well as patient morbidity and mortality. Presently, natural product-based therapeutics are gaining significant attention both for their antimicrobial effectiveness and for not persuading drug resistance. Furthermore, recent developments in nanoscience on new drug delivery systems built on nanostructured materials from plants and microbes have emerged which focus on targeted delivery and controlled release of therapeutic agents. This review examines the recent investigations on the biological activities of plant and bacterial biological material for silver nanoparticle (AgNP) synthesis. Also, the underlying mechanism of antimicrobial activities of silver nanoparticles against human pathogens will be discussed. A fact of the biological activities and/or chemical responses of plants is required, not only for the discovery of new therapeutic agents, but because such evidence may be of value in disclosing new sources of already known biologically active compounds.