Green nanomaterials have gained much attention due to their potential use as therapeutic agents. The present study investigated the production of silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) from a silver-resistant Bacillus safensis TEN12 strain, which was isolated from metal contaminated soil and taxonomically identified through 16S rRNA gene sequencing. The formation of AgNPs in bacterial culture was confirmed by using UV-vis spectroscopy with an absorption peak at 426.18 nm. Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy confirmed the involvement of capping proteins and alcohols for stabilization of AgNPs. Moreover, X-ray diffraction analysis (XRD), scanning and transmission electron microscopy (SEM and TEM) confirmed the crystalline nature and spherical shape of AgNPs with particle size ranging from 22.77 to 45.98 nm. The energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX) revealed that 93.54% silver content is present in the nano-powder. AgNPs showed maximum antibacterial activity (20.35 mm and 19.69 mm inhibition zones) at 20 µg mL-1 concentration against Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli, respectively and significantly reduced the pathogen density in broth culture. Furthermore, AgNPs demonstrated significant anticancer effects in the human liver cancer cell line (HepG2) in MTT assay, whereas, no cytotoxic effects were demonstrated by AgNPs on normal cell line (HEK293). The present study suggests that the biogenic AgNPs may substitute chemically synthesized drugs with wider applications as antibacterial and anticancer agents.

The delayed healing of wounds among people with diabetes is a severe problem worldwide. Hyperglycemia and increased levels of free radicals are the major inhibiting factors of wound healing in diabetic patients. Plant extracts are a rich source of polyphenols, allowing them to be an effective agent for wound healing. Drying temperature and extraction solvent highly affect the stability of polyphenols in plant materials. However, there is a need to optimize the extraction protocol to ensure the efficacy of the final product. For this purpose, the effects of drying temperature and solvents on the polyphenolic composition and diabetic wound healing activity of Moringa oleifera leaves were examined in the present research. Fresh leaves were oven dried at different temperatures (10 °C, 30 °C, 50 °C, and 100 °C) and extracted in three solvents (acetone, ethanol, and methanol) to obtain twelve extracts in total. The extracts were assessed for free radical scavenging and antihyperglycemic effects using DPPH (2,2-diphenylpicrylhydrazyl) and α- glucosidase inhibition assays. Alongside this, a scratch assay was performed to evaluate the cell migration activity of M. oleifera on the human retinal pigment epithelial cell line. The cytotoxicity of the plant extracts was assessed on human retinal pigment epithelial (RPE) and hepatocellular carcinoma (Huh-7) cell lines. Using high-performance liquid chromatography, phenolic compounds in extracts of M. oleifera were identified. We found that an ethanol-based extract prepared by drying the leaves at 10 °C contained the highest amounts of identified polyphenols. Moringa oleifera extracts showed remarkable antioxidant, antidiabetic, and cell migration properties. The best results were obtained with leaves dried at 10 °C and 30 °C. Decreased activities were observed with drying temperatures of 50 °C and above. Moreover, M. oleifera extracts exhibited no toxicity on RPE cells, and the same extracts were cytotoxic for Huh-7 cells. This study revealed that M. oleifera leaves extracts can enhance wound healing in diabetic conditions due to their antihyperglycemic, antioxidant, and cell migration effects. The leaves of this plant can be an excellent therapeutic option when extracted at optimum conditions.

The leaves of Plantago major have been used for the treatment of wounds and inflammation in folk medicine from prehistoric times. However there is no report on the use of P. major to treat inflammation in oral epithelial cell lines. The present study was undertaken to reveal possible anti-inflammatory effects of Plantago major leaf extracts on oral epithelial cells in-vitro. Water- and ethanol-based extracts of P. major leaves were prepared from freeze-dried plant material, and tested in-vitro using the oral epithelial cell line H400. The anti-inflammatory activity of P. major was tested against E. coli lipopolysaccharide (LPS) using the nuclear factor kappa beta (NF-kB) assay. Both the water- and the ethanol-based extracts, as well as a combination of the two extracts, showed anti-inflammatory activity. A concentration of 0.1 mg/mL (on dry weight basis) yielded the best results for all extracts. The results show that synergistic effects of both polyphenols and water-soluble compounds (possibly polysaccharides) are responsible for anti-inflammatory activities of P. major.

Treatment of liver cancer has always been a challenge for clinicians and development of appropriate drug against hepatocellular carcinoma is the major focus for researchers working in the field. The synthesis of metal-based nanoparticles (NPs) by green method for pharmacological uses has attained considerable attention recently. In current study three different NPs (AgO₂, CeO₂, CuO₂) were synthesized by using Trianthima portulacastrum and Chinopodium quinoa leaf extracts. These biogenic NPs were analyzed by High-tech. approaches including Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) with Energy Dispersive X-ray (EDX) spectroscope, SEM-EDS spot analysis, elemental mapping and X-ray diffraction (XRD). The anticancer potential of these nanoparticles was estimated using MTT assay, against hepatic cancer cell line (HepG2). SEM secondary electron images presented the nano size of prepared particles in agglomerated form with few porous forms. Average size of Ag-, Ce-, and CuNPs was observed 19-24 nm, 8-12 nm, 13-15 nm respectively. Elemental mapping and EDS-spot analysis ratifies the formation of AgNPs, CeNPs, and CuNPs. These NPs have shown good anticancer activity at different concentrations against HepG2 cell line. Further studies are however needed to identify the molecular mechanisms of these anticancer activities.

Coronopus didymus (Brassicaceae) commonly known as lesser swine cress has been reported to be used for its pharmacological activities. This study aimed to evaluate the medicinal potential of C. didymus extracts against cancer, diabetes, infectious bacteria and oxidative stress and the identification of bioactive compounds present in these extracts. The effects of using different solvents for the extraction of C. didymus on the contents of major polyphenols and biological activities were investigated. Plant sample was shade dried, ground to a fine powder, and then soaked in pure acetone, ethanol and methanol. The highest contents of major polyphenols were found in methanol-based extract, i.e., chlorogenic acid, HB acid, kaempferol, ferulic acid, quercetin and benzoic acid with 305.02, 12.42, 11.5, 23.33, 975.7 and 428 mg/g of dry weight, respectively, followed by ethanol- and acetone-based extracts. The methanol-based extract also resulted in the highest antioxidant activities (56.76%), whereas the highest antiproliferative (76.36) and alpha glucosidase inhabitation (96.65) were demonstrated in ethanol-based extracts. No antibacterial property of C. didymus was observed against all the tested strains of bacteria. Further studies should be focused on the identification of specific bioactive compounds responsible for pharmacological activities.