Affiliations 

  • 1 CQM-Centro de Química da Madeira, MMRG, Universidade da Madeira, Campus da Penteada, 9020-105 Funchal, Portugal
  • 2 R & D Division, Creative Carbon Labs Pvt Ltd, Chennai, 600113 India
  • 3 Singapore Centre for Environmental Life Sciences Engineering, Nanyang Technological University, 639798 Singapore, Singapore
  • 4 TUM School of Life Sciences, Technical University of Munich, 85354 Freising, Germany
  • 5 Department of Chemical and Energy Engineering, Faculty of Engineering and Science, Curtin University, CDT 250, 98009 Miri, Sarawak, Malaysia
  • 6 Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Tennessee, Chattanooga, TN 37403 USA
  • 7 School of Materials Science and Engineering, Center for Nano Energy Materials, Northwestern Polytechnical University, Xi'an, 710072 China
J Nanostructure Chem, 2022;12(5):809-831.
PMID: 35070207 DOI: 10.1007/s40097-021-00465-y

Abstract

Numerous viral infections are common among humans, and some can lead to death. Even though conventional antiviral agents are beneficial in eliminating viral infections, they may lead to side effects or physiological toxicity. Silver nanoparticles and nanocomposites have been demonstrated to possess inhibitory properties against several pathogenic microbes, including archaea, bacteria, fungi, algae, and viruses. Its pronounced antimicrobial activity against various microbe-mediated diseases potentiates its use in combating viral infections. Notably, the appropriated selection of the synthesis method to fabricate silver nanoparticles is a major factor for consideration as it directly impacts antiviral efficacy, level of toxicity, scalability, and environmental sustainability. Thus, this article presents and discusses various synthesis approaches to produce silver nanoparticles and nanocomposites, providing technological insights into selecting approaches to generate antiviral silver-based nanoparticles. The antiviral mechanism of various formulations of silver nanoparticles and the evaluation of its propensity to combat specific viral infections as a potential antiviral agent are also discussed.

* Title and MeSH Headings from MEDLINE®/PubMed®, a database of the U.S. National Library of Medicine.