Biosynthesis and Characterization of Silver Nanoparticles from the Extremophile Plant Aeonium haworthii and Their Antioxidant, Antimicrobial and Anti-Diabetic Capacities

• Published in: Nanomaterials (Basel, Switzerland) Vol. 13; no. 1; p. 100
• Main Authors: Essghaier, Badiaa, Dridi, Rihab, Mottola, Filomena, Rocco, Lucia, Zid, Mohamed Faouzi, Hannachi, Hédia
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Switzerland MDPI AG 25.12.2022; MDPI
• Subjects: Acarbose; Aeonium haworthii; antidiabetic capacities; Antifungal activity; Antiinfectives and antibacterials; antimicrobial; Antimicrobial agents; antioxidant; Antioxidants; Ascorbic acid; Biocompatibility; Biosynthesis; Cancer; Diabetes; Diabetes mellitus; Drugs; Enzymes; Flowers & plants; Fungicides; Herbal medicine; Medical diagnosis; Morphogenesis; Nanoparticles; Onychomycosis; Pharmaceuticals; Proteinase; Silver; silver nanoparticles; Spectrum analysis; Virulence; α-Amylase; Tunisia; antimicrobial; antioxidant; antidiabetic capacities; silver nanoparticles; Aeonium haworthii
• ISSN: 2079-4991; 2079-4991
• DOI: 10.3390/nano13010100

The present paper described the first green synthesis of silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) from the extremophile plant . The characterization of the biosynthesized silver nanoparticles was carried out by using UV-Vis, FTIR and STM analysis. The antioxidant, antidiabetic and antimicrobial properties were also reported. The newly described AgNPs were spherical in shape and had a size of 35-55 nm. The lowest IC50 values measured by the DPPH assay indicate the superior antioxidant behavior of our AgNPs as opposed to ascorbic acid. The silver nanoparticles show high antidiabetic activity determined by the inhibitory effect of α amylase as compared to the standard Acarbose. Moreover, the AgNPs inhibit bacterial growth owing to a bactericidal effect with the MIC values varying from 0.017 to 1.7 µg/mL. The antifungal action was evaluated against , , , and non-dermatophytic onychomycosis fungi. A strong inhibitory effect on Candida factors' virulence was observed as proteinase and phospholipase limitations. In addition, the microscopic observations show that the silver nanoparticles cause the eradication of blastospores and block filamentous morphogenesis. The combination of the antioxidant, antimicrobial and antidiabetic behaviors of the new biosynthesized silver nanoparticles highlights their promising use as natural phytomedicine agents.