Aloe Vera-Mediated Te Nanostructures: Highly Potent Antibacterial Agents and Moderated Anticancer Effects

Abstract

Cancer and antimicrobial resistance to antibiotics are two of the most worrying healthcare concerns that humanity is facing nowadays. Some of the most promising solutions for these healthcare problems may come from nanomedicine. While the traditional synthesis of nanomaterials is often accompanied by drawbacks such as high cost or the production of toxic by-products, green nanotechnology has been presented as a suitable solution to overcome such challenges. In this work, an approach for the synthesis of tellurium (Te) nanostructures in aqueous media has been developed using aloe vera (AV) extracts as a unique reducing and capping agent. Te-based nanoparticles (AV-TeNPs), with sizes between 20 and 60 nm, were characterized in terms of physicochemical properties and tested for potential biomedical applications. A significant decay in bacterial growth after 24 h was achieved for both Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus and multidrug-resistant Escherichia coli at a relative low concentration of 5 µg/mL, while there was no cytotoxicity towards human dermal fibroblasts after 3 days of treatment. AV-TeNPs also showed anticancer properties up to 72 h within a range of concentrations between 5 and 100 µg/mL. Consequently, here, we present a novel and green approach to produce Te-based nanostructures with potential biomedical applications, especially for antibacterial and anticancer applications.

Synthesis of “Naked” TeO2Nanoparticles for Biomedical Applications

“…aureus, respectively. These values are in correlation with similar nanostructures of Te, such as Te/Te oxide NPs, Te nanorods, and composites of gold and silver with Te …”

“…These IC50 values are in concordance with similar nanostructures based on Te found in the literature and show that the NPs can be safely used in the presence of HDF cells and cause a remarkable cytotoxic behavior when exposed to human melanoma cells. 21 , 42 , 58 …”

“…Both bacteria were cultured according to the ATCC instructions. The entire protocol is described in refs , . All experiments were repeated in triplicate ( N = 3) unless otherwise indicated to ensure the reliability of the results.…”

Biocompatible tellurium nanoneedles with long-term stable antibacterial activity for accelerated wound healing

“…In addition, the antibacterial activities of Te nanoparticles are possibly related to the formation of ROS [ 35 , [52] , [53] , [54] ]. A high ROS level can increase oxidative stress in cells, which can damage both the cell membranes and the proteins, then cause bacterial death.…”

Development of Nanolubricant Using Aloe Vera Plant to Enhance the Thermal Performance of a Domestic Refrigeration System

“…Zinc Oxide is a unique composition with unrivalled photoelectrochemical attributes. It is known for being a nontoxic inorganic metal with unmatched electrical and optical properties, as well as being multidimensional with several potential uses [8]. ZnO has a wide range of applications in superconducting materials and electromechanical attributes, including piezoelectric devices, biosensor, nature conservation, photodetectors, pharmaceuticals, and perfumery, and even fabric treatment technology.…”