The synthesis of metal oxide nanocomposite by using the green method has gotten special consideration due to a cheaper and eco-friendly approach. Decreasing antibiotic effectiveness calls for the fast advancement of other alternative antimicrobials. CuO, ZnO, and CuO/ZnO nanocomposites were successfully synthesized using Zingiber officinale rhizome extract as a mild, renewable, and nontoxic reducing agent and proficient stabilizer with the nonappearance of hazardous and toxic chemicals. UV-Vis spectroscopy, Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy, and X-ray diffraction (XRD) were used to characterize CuO, ZnO, and CuO/ZnO nanocomposites. The UV-Visible result showed the absorbance peak at 270nm, 355nm, 365nm, and 370nm corresponding to the characteristic band of CuO NPs, ZnO NPs, 10 CuO/ZnO, and 20 CuO/ZnO nanocomposites, respectively. FT-IR confirmed the nature of bonds and the presence of different functional groups in the Zingiber officinale rhizome extract, CuO, ZnO, and CuO/ZnO nanocomposites. The XRD analysis revealed that all the synthesized particles have a crystalline nature with a particle size of 4.35nm, 14.54nm, 18.41nm, and 20.50nm of CuO NPs, ZnO NPs, 10 CuO/ZnO, and 20 CuO/ZnO NCs, respectively. The synthesized nanoparticles and nanocomposites showed inhibition against Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria up to a concentration of 12.5mg/mL. The highest inhibition against Staphylococcus aureus ATCC 25926 and Escherichia coli ATCC was 20±0.7mm and 16±0.5mm in diameter, respectively, by 50mg/mL of 20 CuO/ZnO NCs. In general, the biosynthesized nanoparticles and nanocomposites showed effective antibacterial activity.

Due to biochemically active secondary metabolites that assist in the reduction, stabilization, and capping of nanoparticles, plant-mediated nanoparticle synthesis is becoming more and more popular. This is because it allows for ecologically friendly, feasible, sustainable, and cost-effective green synthesis techniques. This study describes the biosynthesis of silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) functionalized with histidine and phenylalanine using the Lippia abyssinica (locally called koseret) plant leaf extract. The functionalization with amino acids was meant to enhance the biological activities of the AgNPs. The synthesized nanoparticles were characterized using UV-Visible absorption (UV-Vis), powder X-ray diffraction (pXRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy-dispersive X-ray (EDX) spectroscopy, transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy. The surface plasmonic resonance (SPR) peak at about 433 nm confirmed the biosynthesis of the AgNPs. FTIR spectra also revealed that the phytochemicals in the plant extract were responsible for the capping of the biogenically synthesized AgNPs. On the other hand, the TEM micrograph revealed that the morphology of AgNP-His had diameters ranging from 5 to 14 nm. The antibacterial activities of the synthesized nanoparticles against Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria showed a growth inhibition of 8.67 ± 1.25 and 11.00 ± 0.82 mm against Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus, respectively, at a concentration of 62.5 μg/mL AgNP-His. Moreover, the nanoparticle has an antioxidant activity potential of 63.76 ± 1.25% at 250 μg/mL. The results showed that the green-synthesized AgNPs possess promising antioxidant and antibacterial activities with the potential for biological applications.

Cancer is characterized by abnormal cell differentiation in or on the part of the body. The most commonly used chemotherapeutic drugs are developed to target rapidly dividing cells, such as cancer cells, but they also damage healthy epithelial cells. This has serious consequences for normal cells and become responsible for the development of various disorders. Several strategies for delivering the cytotoxic drugs to cancerous sites that limit systemic toxicity and other adverse effects have recently been evolved. Among them, biomolecule-conjugated metal complexes-based cancer targeting strategies have shown tremendous advantages in cancer therapy. This review focuses on several chemoselective biomolecules-bound metal complexes as prospective cancer therapy-targeted agents. In this review, we presented the details of the various extra- and intracellular targeting mechanisms in cancer therapy. We also addressed the current clinical issues and recent therapeutic strategies in targeted cancer therapy that may pave a way for the future direction of metal complexes-based targeted cancer therapy.

The utilization of metallodrugs as a viable alternative to organic molecules has gained significant attention in modern medicine. We hereby report synthesis of new imine quinoline ligand (IQL)-based Cu(II) complexes and evaluation of their potential biological applications. Syntheses of the ligand and complexes were achieved by condensation of 7-chloro-2-hydroxyquinoline-3-carbaldehyde and 2,2'-thiodianiline, followed by complexation with Cu(II) metal ions. The synthesized ligand and complexes were characterized using UV-vis spectroscopy, TGA/DTA, FTIR spectroscopy, ¹H and ¹³C NMR spectroscopy, and pXRD. The pXRD diffractogram analysis revealed that the synthesized ligand and its complexes were polycrystalline systems, with nanolevel average crystallite sizes of 13.28, 31.47, and 11.57 nm for IQL, CuL, and CuL ₂ , respectively. The molar conductivity confirmed the nonelectrolyte nature of the Cu(II) complexes. The biological activity of the synthesized ligand and its Cu(II) complexes was evaluated with in vitro assays, to examine anticancer activity against the MCF-7 human breast cancer cell line and antibacterial activity against Gram-positive (Staphylococcus aureus) and Gram-negative (Escherichia coli and Pseudomonas aeruginosa) bacterial strains. The CuL complex had the highest cytotoxic potency against MCF-7 breast cancer cells, with an IC₅₀ of 43.82 ± 2.351 μg/mL. At 100 μg/mL, CuL induced the largest reduction of cancer cell proliferation by 97%, whereas IQL reduced cell proliferation by 53% and CuL ₂ by 28%. The minimum inhibitory concentration for CuL was found to be 12.5 μg/mL against the three tested pathogens. Evaluation of antioxidant activity using 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl revealed that CuL exhibited the highest antioxidant activity with IC₅₀ of 153.3 ± 1.02 μg/mL. Molecular docking results showed strong binding affinities of CuL to active sites of S. aureus, E. coli, and estrogen receptor alpha, indicating its high biological activity compared to IQL and CuL ₂ .