Silver Nanoparticles as Potential Antiviral Agents

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Abstract

Since the early 1990s, nanotechnology has led to new horizons in nanomedicine, which encompasses all spheres of science including chemistry, material science, biology, and biotechnology. Emerging viral infections are creating severe hazards to public health worldwide, recently, COVID-19 has caused mass human casualties with significant economic impacts. Interestingly, silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) exhibited the potential to destroy viruses, bacteria, and fungi using various methods. However, developing safe and effective antiviral drugs is challenging, as viruses use host cells for replication. Designing drugs that do not harm host cells while targeting viruses is complicated. In recent years, the impact of AgNPs on viruses has been evaluated. Here, we discuss the potential role of silver nanoparticles as antiviral agents. In this review, we focus on the properties of AgNPs such as their characterization methods, antiviral activity, mechanisms, applications, and toxicity.

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SARS and MERS: recent insights into emerging coronaviruses

Emmie de Wit, Neeltje van Doremalen, Darryl Falzarano … (2016)

Key Points Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS-CoV) and Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) are zoonotic pathogens that can cause severe respiratory disease in humans. Although disease progression is fairly similar for SARS and MERS, the case fatality rate of MERS is much higher than that of SARS. Comorbidities have an important role in SARS and MERS. Several risk factors are associated with progression to acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) in SARS and MERS cases, especially advanced age and male sex. For MERS, additional risk factors that are associated with severe disease include chronic conditions such as diabetes mellitus, hypertension, cancer, renal and lung disease, and co-infections. Although the ancestors of SARS-CoV and MERS-CoV probably circulate in bats, zoonotic transmission of SARS-CoV required an incidental amplifying host. Dromedary camels are the MERS-CoV reservoir from which zoonotic transmission occurs; serological evidence indicates that MERS-CoV-like viruses have been circulating in dromedary camels for at least three decades. Human-to-human transmission of SARS-CoV and MERS-CoV occurs mainly in health care settings. Patients do not shed large amounts of virus until well after the onset of symptoms, when patients are most probably already seeking medical care. Analysis of hospital surfaces after the treatment of patients with MERS showed the ubiquitous presence of infectious virus. Our understanding of the pathogenesis of SARS-CoV and MERS-CoV is still incomplete, but the combination of viral replication in the lower respiratory tract and an aberrant immune response is thought to have a crucial role in the severity of both syndromes. The severity of the diseases that are caused by emerging coronaviruses highlights the need to develop effective therapeutic measures against these viruses. Although several treatments for SARS and MERS (based on inhibition of viral replication with drugs or neutralizing antibodies, or on dampening the host response) have been identified in animal models and in vitro studies, efficacy data from human clinical trials are urgently required. Supplementary information The online version of this article (doi:10.1038/nrmicro.2016.81) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

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Nanoparticles: Properties, applications and toxicities

Ibrahim Khan, Khalid Saeed, Idrees Khan (2017)

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Monodisperse FePt nanoparticles and ferromagnetic FePt nanocrystal superlattices

Sun, Murray, Weller … (2000)

Synthesis of monodisperse iron-platinum (FePt) nanoparticles by reduction of platinum acetylacetonate and decomposition of iron pentacarbonyl in the presence of oleic acid and oleyl amine stabilizers is reported. The FePt particle composition is readily controlled, and the size is tunable from 3- to 10-nanometer diameter with a standard deviation of less than 5%. These nanoparticles self-assemble into three-dimensional superlattices. Thermal annealing converts the internal particle structure from a chemically disordered face-centered cubic phase to the chemically ordered face-centered tetragonal phase and transforms the nanoparticle superlattices into ferromagnetic nanocrystal assemblies. These assemblies are chemically and mechanically robust and can support high-density magnetization reversal transitions.