Mass production of morin-stabilized silver nanoparticles: Characterization, antioxidant, and antimicrobial activities.

Phytochemical-conjugated silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) are believed to act as a bridge between nanotechnology and therapy. There is a significant need for green and mass production of such materials due to their extensive applications, especially in the biomedical sector. In this study, morin-stabilized silver nanoparticles (morin/AgNPs) were synthesized on a massive scale using a one-pot solid-state technique. The reaction is achieved by ball milling of morin and silver nitrate powders at ambient temperature without any solvent or toxic reagent. The prepared morin/AgNPs exhibited a semi-hexagonal shape and ranged in size from 21 to 43 nm. The x-ray diffraction results elucidated the formation of highly crystalline AgNPs. Fourier transform infrared and x-ray photoelectron spectroscopic analyses prove that the hydroxyl, carbonyl, and aromatic functionalities in morin are playing major roles in the reduction and stabilization of AgNPs. The antioxidant potential of morin/AgNPs was evaluated utilizing 2,2-Diphenyl-1-picryl-hydrazyl (DPPH) assay. Morin/AgNPs exhibited better free radical scavenging activity (IC50 = 11.7 µg/mL) than morin (IC50 = 14.8 µg/mL). Furthermore, the synthesized AgNPs showed promising antimicrobial activity against Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumonia, Staphylococcus aureus, Streptococcus mutans, and Candida albicans. The largest inhibition zones were observed against S. aureus (21.2 ± 0.6 mm) and K. pneumonia (20.3 ± 0.5 mm) bacteria. The foregoing results highlighted the prospective application of morin/AgNPs as a promising antioxidant and antimicrobial material for safe medical applications. RESEARCH HIGHLIGHTS: A simple green route for the large-scale production of AgNPs was developed. Morin acts as reducing/stabilizing agent in solid-state synthesis of AgNPs. Morin/AgNPs exhibited promising antimicrobial and antioxidant activity.

Synthesis and in-vitro anti-proliferative with antimicrobial activity of new coumarin containing heterocycles hybrids.

A series of new coumarin-N-heterocyclic hybrids, coumarin-quinolines 7a-e, coumarin-acridines 10b,c and coumarin-neocryptolepines 13b,c were synthesized and evaluated for their anticancer and antimicrobial activities. The structures of all synthesized hybrids were confirmed by FT-IR, 1H-NMR, 13C-NMR, and MS spectrometry. The anti-proliferative activity of hybrids 7a-e, 10c and 13c were bio-evaluated using MTT-assay against colon (CaCo-2), lung (A549), breast (MDA-MB-231), and hepatocellular carcinoma (HepG-2) human cancer cell lines using doxorubicin as a reference drug. The results demonstrated that, all hybrids displayed moderate to good anti-proliferative activity against the cell lines. The most active hybrids were 7a-d and 10c against CaCo-2 cancer cell line with IC50: 57.1, 52.78, 57.29, 51.95 and 56.74 µM, and selectivity index 1.38, 1.76, 2.6, 1.96 and 0.77; respectively. While, 7a,d were potent against A549 cancer cell line with IC50: 51.72, 54.8 µM and selectivity index 1.5, 0.67; respectively. Moreover, 7c showed the most potency against MDA-MB-231 cancer cell line with IC50: 50.96 µM and selectivity index 2.20. Interestingly, docking results revealed that binding energy of the current compounds showed marked affinity values ranging from -6.54 to -5.56 kcal with interactions with the reported key amino acid SER 79. Furthermore, the antimicrobial activity of the synthesized hybrids 7a-e, 10b,c, 13b and 13c were evaluated against Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacterial and fungal strains. The hybrids 10b, 13b, 10c, and 13c exhibited broad-spectrum antibacterial activity against E.coli, S. mutans, and S. aureus with MIC from 3.2 to 66 µM, this hybrids also displayed antifungal activity against C. albicans with MIC values ranging from 0.0011 to 29.5 µM. In-silico investigation of the pharmacokinetic properties indicated that tested hybrids had high GI absorption, low Blood Brain Barrier (BBB) permeability in addition to cell membrane penetrability.

Garlic peel as promising low-cost support for the cobalt nanocatalyst; synthesis and catalytic studies.

The development of cost-effective and applied catalysts for organic pollutants degradation is the cornerstone for the future valorizations of these hazardous wastes. Garlic peel was employed as solid support for the assembly of cobalt nanoparticles and was further applied for the catalytic degradation of 4-nitrophenol, bromophenol blue, and a mixture of both. A Cobalt@garlic peel nanocomposite with the morphology of semi-spherical and randomly distributed nanoparticles was prepared without the aid of any hazardous chemicals. The functional groups facilitated the adsorption of cobalt ions onto the surface of garlic peel through van der Waals forces and/or hydrogen bonds. The catalytic experiments were carried out under different operational parameters including pollutant concentration, catalytic dosage, and pH value to identify the optimal conditions for the model solutions. The results showed that the optimal pH for 4-nitrophenol degradation was around 9 and the maximum rate constant 4.56 × 10-3 sec-1. The most prominent feature of the proposed catalyst is the easy/efficient recovery and recycling of the nanoparticles from the reacting medium. This work provided a simple method for designing other similar biomass-stabilized nanocatalysts which might sharply reduce the catalytic treatment costs and broaden the scope of applications.

Ficus retusa-stabilized gold and silver nanoparticles: Controlled synthesis, spectroscopic characterization, and sensing properties.

Ficus retusa was used as reducing and stabilizing agent in the green synthesis of silver and gold nanoparticles with high dispersion stability and controllable size and shape. The controlling of reaction conditions i.e. contact time, extract quantity, metal concentration, and pH value enables the tuning of the particle size and size distribution of the metal nanoparticles. UV-visible spectroscopy was used to follow the spectral profile changes of the surface plasmon resonance of the metal nanoparticles due to different treatments. The surface plasmon resonance varies between 400 and 432 nm and between 522 and 554 nm for silver and gold nanoparticles, respectively, depending on the different reaction parameters. Atomic force and transmission electron microscopy results confirmed the success of preparation of spherical silver (15 nm) and gold (10-25 nm) nanoparticles with narrow size-distribution. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy suggested the phenolic compounds play the key role in the reduction and stabilizing of metal ions. The colorimetric sensitivity of silver and gold nanoparticles to detect the presence of heavy metals in water was studied.

Phoenix dactylifera L. leaf extract phytosynthesized gold nanoparticles; controlled synthesis and catalytic activity.

A green synthesis route was reported to explore the reducing and capping potential of Phoenix dactylifera extract for the synthesis of gold nanoparticles. The processes of nucleation and growth of gold nanoparticles were followed by monitoring the absorption spectra during the reaction. The size and morphology of these nanoparticles was typically imaged using transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The particle size ranged between 32 and 45 nm and are spherical in shape. Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) analysis suggests that the synthesized gold nanoparticles might be stabilized through the interactions of hydroxyl and carbonyl groups in the carbohydrates, flavonoids, tannins and phenolic acids present in P. dactylifera. The as-synthesized Au colloids exhibited good catalytic activity for the degradation of 4-nitrophenol.

Malva parviflora extract assisted green synthesis of silver nanoparticles.

Five plant leaf extracts (Malva parviflora, Beta vulgaris subsp. Vulgaris, Anethum graveolens, Allium kurrat and Capsicum frutescens) were screened for their bioreduction behavior for synthesis of silver nanoparticles. M. parviflora (Malvaceae) was found to exhibit the best reducing and protecting action in terms of synthesis rate and monodispersity of the prepared silver nanoparticles. Our measurements indicate that biosynthesis of Ag nanoparticles by M. parviflora produces Ag nanoparticles with the diameters in the range of 19-25 nm. XRD studies reveal a high degree of crystallinity and monophasic Ag nanoparticles of face-centered cubic structure. FTIR analysis proved that particles are reduced and stabilized in solution by the capping agent that is likely to be proteins secreted by the biomass. The present process is an excellent candidate for the synthesis of silver nanoparticles that is simple, easy to perform, pollutant free and inexpensive.

Anti-schistosomiasis triterpene glycoside from the Egyptian medicinal plant Asparagus stipularis

Bioassay-guided isolation using an in vitro assay testing for anti- schistosomiasis yielded a novel triterpene saponin, asparagalin A, from the n-butanol extract of the roots of Asparagus stipularis Forssk., Asparagaceae. The structure was elucidated by spectroscopic analysis and chemical transformations. Administration of asparagalin A resulted in a retardation of worm growth and locomotion at the first day and showed a significant activity of egg-laying suppression at 200 µg/mL concentration.

Naturally occurring xanthones; latest investigations: isolation, structure elucidation and chemosystematic significance.

In this review, an updated literature survey covering the reports of naturally occurring xanthones in the period of 2005-2008 is presented. In some 143 studies, the isolation of 264 different xanthones from 36 plant species (representing 15 genera in 6 families of higher plants), 7 species of fungi, and 1 lichen species were reported. Of these, 122 compounds were isolated for the first time from nature. We discuss plant origin, the way of separation, and spectral analysis done for structure elucidation, along with a brief discussion of the chemosystematic significance.