Publication Details

AFRICAN RESEARCH NEXUS

SHINING A SPOTLIGHT ON AFRICAN RESEARCH

chemical engineering

The antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory effects of silver nanoparticles synthesised from cotyledon orbiculata aqueous extract

Nanomaterials, Volume 11, No. 5, Article 1343, Year 2021

Cotyledon orbiculata, commonly known as pig’s ear, is an important medicinal plant of South Africa. It is used in traditional medicine to treat many ailments, including skin eruptions, abscesses, inflammation, boils and acne. Many plants have been used to synthesize metallic nanoparticles, particularly silver nanoparticles (AgNPs). However, the synthesis of AgNPs from C. orbiculata has never been reported before. The aim of this study was to synthesize AgNPs using C. orbiculata and evaluate their antimicrobial and immunomodulatory properties. AgNPs were synthesized and characterized using Ultraviolet-Visible Spectroscopy (UV-Vis), Dynamic Light Scattering (DLS) and High-Resolution Transmission Electron Microscopy (HR-TEM). The antimicrobial activities of the nanoparticles against skin pathogens (Staphylococcus aureus, Staphylococcus epidermidis, Methicillin Resistance Staphylococcus aureus, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Candida albicans) as well as their effects on cytokine production in macrophages (differentiated from THP-1 cells) were evaluated. The Ag-NPs from C. orbiculata exhibited antimicrobial activity, with the highest activity observed against P. aeruginosa (5 µg/mL). The AgNPs also showed anti-inflammatory activity by inhibiting the secre-tion of pro-inflammatory cytokines (TNF-alpha, IL-6 and IL-1 beta) in lipopolysaccharide-treated macrophages. This concludes that the AgNPs produced from C. orbiculata possess antimicrobial and anti-inflammation properties.
Statistics
Citations: 64
Authors: 5
Affiliations: 2
Identifiers
Research Areas
Health System And Policy
Study Locations
South Africa