AgNPs have gained significant attention due to their unique physicochemical properties, making them valuable across a range of fields including medicine, textiles, and household products. With their strong antimicrobial and antiviral properties, AgNPs have shown promise in treating infections, particularly in wound care management. This review explores the mechanisms underlying the antiviral activities of AgNPs, as well as the methods used for their synthesis, which include physical, chemical, and biological approaches. The review also addresses the potential limitations of AgNPs, including their cytotoxicity to humans and the environment. The interaction between AgNPs and microorganisms, particularly viruses, varies based on synthesis methods and particle morphology. As viral infections, including resistant strains, present major global health challenges, there is a growing need for alternative antiviral therapies. Metal nanoparticles like AgNPs offer potential advantages over conventional antiviral drugs due to their broad target range, which reduces the likelihood of resistance development. This review highlights AgNPs’ effectiveness against a variety of viruses, such as HIV, hepatitis B, and respiratory syncytial virus, and discusses their potential for use in novel antiviral treatments. The review also examines AgNPs’ toxicity, offering insights into their future therapeutic roles.

Zinc nanoparticles (Zn-NPs) are well-known versatile nanomaterials with a wide range of applications across diverse fields. Often, they range from ≈ 1 to 100 nm and have superior surface reactivity and excellent optical properties. Extensive research has demonstrated that these nanoparticles offer several advantages in fields such as medicinal applications, organic synthesis, agricultural applications, drug delivery, textile coatings, and food technology. Green synthesis of Zn-NPs offers several advantages, such as environmentally benign, cost-effective routes and improved bioactivity. This review summarizes recent papers (mostly from 2010 to 2025, extracted from Scopus/Web of Science/Google Scholar) on synthesis methodologies, characterization techniques, and emerging applications of various Zn-NPs, providing insights that support future innovations and the safe integration of Zn-NPs into varied systems.