The Emerging Trend of Bio-Engineering Approaches for Microbial Nanomaterial Synthesis and Its Applications

Abstract

Micro-organisms colonized the world before the multi-cellular organisms evolved. With the advent of microscopy, their existence became evident to the mankind and also the vast processes they regulate, that are in direct interest of the human beings. One such process that intrigued the researchers is the ability to grow in presence of toxic metals. The process seemed to be simple with the metal ions being sequestrated into the inclusion bodies or cell surfaces enabling the conversion into nontoxic nanostructures. However, the discovery of genome sequencing techniques highlighted the genetic makeup of these microbes as a quintessential aspect of these phenomena. The findings of metal resistance genes (MRG) in these microbes showed a rather complex regulation of these processes. Since most of these MRGs are plasmid encoded they can be transferred horizontally. With the discovery of nanoparticles and their many applications from polymer chemistry to drug delivery, the demand for innovative techniques of nanoparticle synthesis increased dramatically. It is now established that microbial synthesis of nanoparticles provides numerous advantages over the existing chemical methods. However, it is the explicit use of biotechnology, molecular biology, metabolic engineering, synthetic biology, and genetic engineering tools that revolutionized the world of microbial nanotechnology. Detailed study of the micro and even nanolevel assembly of microbial life also intrigued biologists and engineers to generate molecular motors that mimic bacterial flagellar motor. In this review, we highlight the importance and tremendous hidden potential of bio-engineering tools in exploiting the area of microbial nanoparticle synthesis. We also highlight the application oriented specific modulations that can be done in the stages involved in the synthesis of these nanoparticles. Finally, the role of these nanoparticles in the natural ecosystem is also addressed.

Biological Approaches Integrating Algae and Bacteria for the Degradation of Wastewater Contaminants—A Review

“…Microalgae purify water through either direct uptake of contaminants or their transformation to harmless products (Dhanker et al, 2021). Algal species are reported to facilitate bacterial degradation of organics by providing oxygen through photosynthesis, which reduces costs and energy expenditure associated with the gassing/stirring process for aeration (Wollmann et al, 2019).…”

“…Microalgae cultures offer an elegant solution to tertiary and quaternary treatments due to the ability of microalgae to use inorganic nitrogen and phosphorus for their growth. They are also known for their capacity to remove heavy metals and some toxic organic compounds, thus can also help to prevent secondary pollution (Raouf et al, 2012;Arora et al, 2021;Dhanker et al, 2021).…”

Safety and Toxicity Implications of Multifunctional Drug Delivery Nanocarriers on Reproductive Systems In Vitro and In Vivo

“…In addition to that, reports have yielded various evidence that toxicological outcomes to these oocyte cells get increased with Ag molar fractions. Other in vitro models of zebrafish ovary follicular cells around the oocytes, thecal cellular regions, and granulosal cell localities exhibited the apoptotic cell death having the phenotype of irregular cellular morphologies, unorganized cytoplasmic regions that are disunited and fractionated, and condensed nuclear regions post-exposure to silver nanoparticles and silver nitrate ( Ferdous and Nemmar, 2020 ; Dhanker et al, 2021 ). Various in vitro experimentations have also demonstrated that quantum dots conjugated with transferrin molecules can be chiefly uptaken by cumulus cellular structures; however, no quantum dot was able to get entry into the oocyte cells.…”

Green synthesis of silver nanoparticles from vegetable waste of pea Pisum sativum and bottle gourd Lagenaria siceraria: Characterization and antibacterial properties

“…Improved efficiency, productivity, and sustainability have been reported in biologically synthesized AgNPs (Chung et al, 2016). AgNPs are the potential candidates for inhibiting the growth of the bacteria indicating a promising approach for preserving vegetables and fruits (Carmona-Cabello et al, 2018;Dhanker et al, 2021). The objective of the present research article was to synthesize and characterize AgNPs from peels of two vegetables: pea (Pisum sativum) and bottle gourd (Lagenaria siceraria), and to compare their antibacterial activities.…”