article · BMC Microbiology
Researchers evaluated the biological properties of a starch, silver, and selenium nanocomposite biosynthesised using the fungal strain Cladosporium cladosporioides CBS 174.62. Electron microscopy showed the composite forms oval and spherical particles with an average diameter of 67.87 nanometres. In laboratory tests, the nanocomposite demonstrated anticancer activity against human colorectal and breast cancer cell lines, with minimal effect on red blood cells at low concentrations. It also displayed hydrogen peroxide scavenging capabilities, reaching peak antioxidant activity at two milligrams per millilitre. When tested against microbes, the material inhibited planktonic growth of bacterial and fungal species, most notably Staphylococcus epidermidis and Candida albicans. Furthermore, the nanocomposite suppressed bacterial biofilms in a concentration-dependent manner, significantly reducing biofilm formation in both Staphylococcus epidermidis and Staphylococcus aureus.
Rising microbial resistance to conventional treatments and the need for safer cancer therapies drive interest in multi-component nanomaterials. This study demonstrates that a biosynthesised nanocomposite combining starch, silver, and selenium can target cancer cells and disrupt persistent bacterial biofilms, while maintaining low toxicity to healthy blood cells at lower dosages.
This work points to potential future applications in therapeutic development, such as antimicrobial coatings, biofilm-disrupting formulations, or anticancer agents. Pharmaceutical or biomaterials developers would be the primary interested parties. However, as the research is at an early laboratory stage involving in vitro cell line and microbial assays, extensive further testing is required before real-world use.
AI-generated from the published abstract. Always read the original work before citing.
Abstract Background and objectives Microbial cells capability to tolerate the effect of various antimicrobial classes represent a major worldwide health concern. The flexible and multi-components nanocomposites have enhanced physicochemical characters with several improved properties. Thus, different biological activities of biosynthesized starch/silver-selenium nanocomposite (St/Ag-Se NC) were assessed. Methodology The St/Ag-Se NC was biosynthesized using Cladosporium cladosporioides CBS 174.62 ( C. cladosporioides ) strain. The shape and average particle size were investigated using scanning electron microscope (SEM) and high-resolution transmission electron microscope (HR-TEM), respectively. On the other hand, the St/Ag-Se NC effect on two cancer cell lines and red blood cells (RBCs) was evaluated and its hydrogen peroxide (H 2 O 2 ) scavenging effect was assessed. Moreover, its effects on various microbial species in both planktonic and biofilm growth forms were examined. Results The St/Ag-Se NC was successfully biosynthesized with oval and spherical shape and a mean particle diameter of 67.87 nm as confirmed by the HR-TEM analysis. St/Ag-Se NC showed promising anticancer activity toward human colorectal carcinoma (HCT-116) and human breast cancer (MCF-7) cell lines where IC 50 were 21.37 and 19.98 µg/ml, respectively. Similarly, little effect on RBCs was observed with low nanocomposite concentration. As well, the highest nanocomposite H 2 O 2 scavenging activity (42.84%) was recorded at a concentration of 2 mg/ml. Additionally, Staphylococcus epidermidis ( S. epidermidis ) ATCC 12,228 and Candida albicans ( C. albicans ) ATCC 10,231 were the highly affected bacterial and fungal strains with minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs) of 18.75 and 50 µg/ml, respectively. Moreover, the noticeable effect of St/Ag-Se NC on microbial biofilm was concentration dependent. A high biofilm suppression percentage, 87.5% and 68.05%, were recorded with S. epidermidis and Staphylococcus aureus ( S. aureus ) when exposed to 1 mg/ml and 0.5 mg/ml, respectively. Conclusion The biosynthesized St/Ag-Se NC showed excellent antioxidant activity, haemocompatibility, and anti-proliferative effect at low concentrations. Also, it exhibited promising antimicrobial and antibiofilm activities.
This page summarises published work. The authoritative version sits with the publisher.
DOI: 10.1186/s12866-024-03228-1
Is something wrong with this record? Report it or request removal.
Discussion
Have you built on this work, tried to replicate it, or seen it applied in practice? Share what you know. Verified researchers and MARATTO™ domain experts can open a discussion, and any member can reply. Contributions are reviewed before they appear.
No discussion yet. Open the first thread.
New to MARATTO™? Create a free account.
