Phytogenic Fabrication of Ag-Fe Bimetallic Nanoparticles for Cell Cycle Arrest and Apoptosis Signaling Pathways in Candida auris by Generating Oxidative Stress

Advancements in nanoparticle-based therapies for multidrug-resistant candidiasis infections: a comprehensive review

Candida auris, a rapidly emerging multidrug-resistant fungal pathogen, poses a global health threat, with cases reported in over 47 countries. Conventional detection methods struggle, and the increasing resistance ofC. auristo antifungal agents has limited treatment options. Nanoparticle-based therapies, utilizing materials like silver, carbon, zinc oxide, titanium dioxide, polymer, and gold, show promise in effectively treating cutaneous candidiasis. This review explores recent advancements in nanoparticle-based therapies, emphasizing their potential to revolutionize antifungal therapy, particularly in combatingC. aurisinfections. The discussion delves into mechanisms of action, combinations of nanomaterials, and their application against multidrug-resistant fungal pathogens, offering exciting prospects for improved clinical outcomes and reduced mortality rates. The aim is to inspire further research, ushering in a new era in the fight against multidrug-resistant fungal infections, paving the way for more effective and targeted therapeutic interventions.

Mechanical properties, sustained release, and oxygen scavenging properties of nanocomposite films loaded with bimetallic nanoparticles (Fe2O3/TiO2) in extra virgin olive oil

The aim of this study was the synthesis of bimetallic nanoparticles based on Fe2O3/TiO2 and its use in the poly(lactic acid) (PLA) films as an oxygen scavenger in extra virgin olive oil (EVOO) packaging. Bimetallic nanocomposites were prepared by two different precipitation methods (precipitation with ammonia and sodium hydroxide). The characteristics of bimetallic nanoparticles precipitated with sodium hydroxide (Na-Ti0.01Fe0.048O0.08) and bimetallic nanoparticles precipitated with ammonia (NH-Ti0.01Fe0.022O0.09) were compared. Relative amounts of elements in bimetallic nanocomposites and their morphological characteristics were determined using field emission scanning electron microscopy coupled with energy-dispersive X-ray spectrometer. Porosity volume and surface area of bimetallic nanoparticles were calculated using adsorption-desorption isotherms and the Brunauer-Emmett-Teller method. The formation/characterization of bimetallic nanoparticles and their location in the matrix of PLA-based nanocomposite film was studied using X-ray diffraction and Fourier transform infrared. In nanocomposite films based on PLA, bimetallic nanoparticles lead to better oxidative stability (peroxide value, p-anisidine index, K232, and K270) of the EVOO and oxygen scavenging during storage compared to free nanoparticles. Mechanical properties of nanocomposite films were improved due to bimetallic nanoparticles, which were better for Na-Ti0.01Fe0.048O0.08. In vitro release modeling of the bimetallic nanoparticles in EVOO proved that Fickian diffusion is the dominant mechanism, and the Peleg model was the best description of the release behavior of nanoparticles.

Bioinspired silver nanoparticle-based nanocomposites for effective control of plant pathogens: A review

Plant pathogens, including bacteria, fungi, and viruses, pose significant challenges to the farming community due to their extensive diversity, the rapidly evolving phenomenon of multi-drug resistance (MDR), and the limited availability of effective control measures. Amid mounting global pressure, particularly from the World Health Organization, to limit the use of antibiotics in agriculture and livestock management, there is increasing consideration of engineered nanomaterials (ENMs) as promising alternatives for antimicrobial applications. Studies focusing on the application of ENMs in the fight against MDR pathogens are receiving increasing attention, driven by significant losses in agriculture and critical knowledge gaps in this crucial field. In this review, we explore the potential contributions of silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) and their nanocomposites in combating plant diseases, within the emerging interdisciplinary arena of nano-phytopathology. AgNPs and their nanocomposites are increasingly acknowledged as promising countermeasures against plant pathogens, owing to their unique physicochemical characteristics and inherent antimicrobial properties. This review explores recent advancements in engineered nanocomposites, highlights their diverse mechanisms for pathogen control, and draws attention to their potential in antibacterial, antifungal, and antiviral applications. In the discussion, we briefly address three crucial dimensions of combating plant pathogens: green synthesis approaches, toxicity-environmental concerns, and factors influencing antimicrobial efficacy. Finally, we outline recent advancements, existing challenges, and prospects in scholarly research to facilitate the integration of nanotechnology across interdisciplinary fields for more effective treatment and prevention of plant diseases.

Nanoparticles assisted intra and transdermic delivery of antifungal ointment: an updated review

This review paper highlights the trans-dermic delivery of nanoparticles (NPs) based antifungal ointments with the help of nanotechnology. It also describes the novel trans-dermal approach utilizing various nanoparticles which enables an efficient delivery to the target site. This current review gives an overview about past research and developments as well as the current nanoparticle-based ointments. This review also presents data regarding types, causes of infection, and different pathogens within their infection site. It also gives information about antifungal ointments with their activity and side effects of antifungal medicines. Additionally, this review also focuses on the future aspects of the topical administration of nanoparticle-based antifungal ointments. These nanoparticles can encapsulate multiple antifungal drugs as a combination therapy targeting different aspects of fungal infection. Nanoparticles can be designed in such a way that they can specifically target fungal cells and do not affect healthy cells. Nanoparticle based antifungal ointments exhibit outstanding potential to treat fungal diseases. As further research and advancements evolve in nanotechnology, we expect more development of nanoparticle-based antifungal formulations shortly. This paper discusses all the past and future applications, recent trends, and developments in the various field and also shows its bright prospective in the upcoming years.

Global characteristics and trends in research on Candida auris

Introduction

Candida auris, a fungal pathogen first reported in 2009, has shown strong resistance to azole antifungal drugs and has caused severe nosocomial outbreaks. It can also form biofilms, which can colonize patients' skin and transmit to others. Despite numerous reports of C. auris isolation in various countries, many studies have reported contradictory results.

Method

A bibliometric analysis was conducted using VOSviewer to summarize research trends and provide guidance for future research on controlling C. auris infection. The analysis revealed that the United States and the US CDC were the most influential countries and research institutions, respectively. For the researchers, Jacques F. Meis published the highest amount of related articles, and Anastasia P. Litvintseva's articles with the highest average citation rate. The most cited publications focused on clade classification, accurate identification technologies, nosocomial outbreaks, drug resistance, and biofilm formation. Keyword co-occurrence analysis revealed that the top five highest frequencies were for 'drug resistance,' 'antifungal susceptibility test,' 'infection,' 'Candida auris,' and 'identification.' The high-frequency keywords clustered into four groups: rapid and precise identification, drug resistance research, pathogenicity, and nosocomial transmission epidemiology studies. These clusters represent different study fields and current research hotspots of C. auris.

Conclusion

The bibliometric analysis identified the most influential country, research institution, and researcher, indicating current research trends and hotspots for controlling C. auris.

Biosynthesis of Silver Nanoparticles from Duchesnea indica Extracts Using Different Solvents and Their Antibacterial Activity

Silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) were synthesized using the whole plant of Duchesnea indica (DI) which was extracted in different solvents; the antimicrobial effects of the extract were investigated in this study. The extraction of DI was performed using three different solvents: water, pure ethanol (EtOH), and pure dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO). AgNP formation was monitored by measuring the UV-Vis spectrum of each reaction solution. After synthesis for 48 h, the AgNPs were collected and the negative surface charge and size distribution of the synthesized AgNPs were measured using dynamic light scattering (DLS). The AgNP structure was determined by high-resolution powder X-ray diffraction (XRD) and the AgNP morphology was investigated using transmission electron microscopy (TEM). AgNP antibacterial activities were evaluated against Bacillus cereus, Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, Salmonella enteritidis, and Pseudomonas aeruginosa using the disc diffusion method. Additionally, minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) and minimum bactericidal concentration (MBC) values were also determined. Biosynthesized AgNPs showed enhanced antibacterial activity against B. cereus, S. aureus, E. coli, S. enteritidis, and P. aeruginosa compared with that of pristine solvent extract. These results suggest that AgNPs synthesized from extracts of DI are promising antibacterial agents against pathogenic bacteria and can be further applied in the food industry.

Click synthesis of pyrrolidine-based 1,2,3-triazole derivatives as antifungal agents causing cell cycle arrest and apoptosis in Candida auris

The emergence of multidrug-resistant fungal pathogens such as Candida auris is one of the major reasons WHO has declared fungal infections as a public health threat. Multidrug resistance, high mortality rates, frequent misidentification, and involvement in hospital outbreaks of this fungus demand the development of novel therapeutic drugs. In this direction, we report the synthesis of novel pyrrolidine-based 1,2,3-triazole derivatives using Click Chemistry (CC) and evaluation of their antifungal susceptibility against C. auris following Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute (CLSI) guidelines. The fungicidal activity of the most potent derivative (P6) was further quantitatively confirmed by the MUSE cell viability assay. For insight mechanisms, the effect of the most active derivative on cell cycle arrest was studied using Muse^TM Cell Analyzer and apoptotic mode of cell death was determined by studying phosphatidylserine externalization and mitochondrial depolarization. In vitro susceptibility testing and viability assays showed that all the newly synthesized compounds have antifungal activity with P6 being the most potent derivative. Cell cycle analysis revealed that P6 arrested the cells in S-phase in a concentration dependent manner and the apoptotic mode of cell death was confirmed by the movement of cytochrome c from mitochondria to cytosol with membrane depolarization. The hemolytic assay confirmed the safe use of P6 for further in vivo studies.

Using inorganic nanoparticles to fight fungal infections in the antimicrobial resistant era

Fungal infections pose a serious threat to human health and livelihoods. The number and variety of clinically approved antifungal drugs is very limited, and the emergence and rapid spread of resistance to these drugs means the impact of fungal infections will increase in the future unless alternatives are found. Despite the significance and major challenges associated with fungal infections, this topic receives significantly less attention than bacterial infections. A major challenge in the development of fungi-specific drugs is that both fungi and mammalian cells are eukaryotic and have significant overlap in their cellular machinery. This lack of fungi-specific drug targets makes human cells vulnerable to toxic side effects from many antifungal agents. Furthermore, antifungal drug resistance necessitates higher doses of the drugs, leading to significant human toxicity. There is an urgent need for new antifungal agents, specifically those that can limit the emergence of new resistant species. Non-drug nanomaterials have primarily been explored as antibacterial agents in recent years; however, they are also a promising source of new antifungal candidates. Thus, this article reviews current research on the use of inorganic nanoparticles as antifungal agents. We also highlight challenges facing antifungal nanoparticles and discuss possible future research opportunities in this field. STATEMENT OF SIGNIFICANCE: Fungal infections pose a growing threat to human health and livelihood. The rapid spread of resistance to current antifungal drugs has led to an urgent need to develop alternative antifungals. Nanoparticles have many properties that could make them useful antimycotic agents. To the authors' knowledge, there is no published review so far that has comprehensively summarized the current development status of antifungal inorganic nanomaterials, so we decided to fill this gap. In this review, we discussed the state-of-the-art research on antifungal inorganic nanoparticles including metal, metal oxide, transition-metal dichalcogenides, and inorganic non-metallic particle systems. Future directions for the design of inorganic nanoparticles with higher antifungal efficacy and lower toxicity are described as a guide for further development in this important area.

Eco-Friendly Preparation of Silver Nanoparticles and Their Antiproliferative and Apoptosis-Inducing Ability against Lung Cancer

In the present study, the anti-proliferative and apoptotic potential of Tabebuia roseo-alba in lung cancer was assessed. Silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) of T. roseo-alba were synthesized using an ethanolic extract and characterized by adopting various parameters. Herein, the eco-friendly, cost-effective, and green synthesis of AgNPs was evaluated using an ethanolic extract of T. roseo-alba. The as-synthesized AgNPs were then characterized using various characterization techniques, such as UV-visible spectroscopy (UV-vis), X-ray powder diffraction (XRD), dynamic light scattering (DLS), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The AgNPs are crystalline, spherical, and highly stable AgNPs of varying sizes in the range of 5-20 nm. The anticancer activity of the ethanolic extract of T. roseo-alba and its AgNPs was determined using an MTT assay. The results indicated that, although both samples showed prominent anti-proliferative activity on lung cancer cell lines, the AgNPs of T. roseo-alba were found to be more potent than the ethanolic extract. Further, apoptosis induction ability was evaluated by FITC Annexin V and PI staining, the results of which demonstrated the efficiency of the ethanolic extract of T. roseo-alba and its AgNPs in causing oxidative stress and subsequent cellular death. This was subsequently further confirmed by measuring the mitochondrial membrane potential after staining the cells with JC1. The apoptotic mode of cell death was further confirmed by DNA fragmentation and caspase assays using Western blot analysis.

Combination Effect of Novel Bimetallic Ag–Ni Nanoparticles with Fluconazole against Candida albicans

The increasing frequency of antifungal drug resistance among pathogenic yeast “Candida” has posed an immense global threat to the public healthcare sector. The most notable species of Candida causing most fungal infections is Candida albicans. Furthermore, recent research has revealed that transition and noble metal combinations can have synergistic antimicrobial effects. Therefore, a one-pot seedless biogenic synthesis of Ag-Ni bimetallic nanoparticles (Ag–Ni NPs) using Salvia officinalis aqueous leaf extract is described. Various techniques, such as UV–vis, FTIR, XRD, SEM, EDX, and TGA, were used to validate the production of Ag-Ni NPs. The antifungal susceptibility of Ag-Ni NPs alone and in combination with fluconazole (FLZ) was tested against FLZ-resistant C. albicans isolate. Furthermore, the impacts of these NPs on membrane integrity, drug efflux pumps, and biofilms formation were evaluated. The MIC (1.56 μg/mL) and MFC (3.12 μg/mL) results indicated potent antifungal activity of Ag-Ni NPs against FLZ-resistant C. albicans. Upon combination, synergistic interaction was observed between Ag-Ni NPs and FLZ against C. albicans 5112 with a fractional inhibitory concentration index (FICI) value of 0.31. In-depth studies revealed that Ag-Ni NPs at higher concentrations (3.12 μg/mL) have anti-biofilm properties and disrupt membrane integrity, as demonstrated by scanning electron microscopy results. In comparison, morphological transition was halted at lower concentrations (0.78 μg/mL). From the results of efflux pump assay using rhodamine 6G (R6G), it was evident that Ag-Ni NPs blocks the efflux pumps in the FLZ-resistant C. albicans 5112. Targeting biofilms and efflux pumps using novel drugs will be an alternate approach for combatting the threat of multi-drug resistant (MDR) stains of C. albicans. Therefore, this study supports the usage of Ag-Ni NPs to avert infections caused by drug resistant strains of C. albicans.

Plant-Actuated Micro-Nanorobotics Platforms: Structural Designs, Functional Prospects, and Biomedical Applications

Plants are anatomically and physiologically different from humans and animals; however, there are several possibilities to utilize the unique structures and physiological systems of plants and adapt them to new emerging technologies through a strategic biomimetic approach. Moreover, plants provide safe and sustainable results that can potentially solve the problem of mass-producing practical materials with hazardous and toxic side effects, particularly in the biomedical field, which requires high biocompatibility. In this review, it is investigated how micro-nanostructures available in plants (e.g., nanoparticles, nanofibers and their composites, nanoporous materials, and natural micromotors) are adapted and utilized in the design of suitable materials for a micro-nanorobot platform. How plants' work on micro- and nanoscale systems (e.g., surface roughness, osmotically induced movements such as nastic and tropic, and energy conversion and harvesting) that are unique to plants, can provide functionality on the platform and become further prospective resources are examined. Furthermore, implementation across organisms and fields, which is promising for future practical applications of the plant-actuated micro-nanorobot platform, especially on biomedical applications, is discussed. Finally, the challenges following its implementation in the micro-nanorobot platform are also presented to provide advanced adaptation in the future.

Beta vulgaris Assisted Fabrication of Novel Ag-Cu Bimetallic Nanoparticles for Growth Inhibition and Virulence in Candida albicans

Beta vulgaris extract contains water-soluble red pigment betanin and is used as a food colorant. In this study, the biogenic Ag-Cu bimetallic nanoparticles were synthesized and characterized by different spectroscopic and microscopic techniques, including UV-Visible, FTIR, TEM. SEM-EDX, XRD, and TGA. Further, Ag-Cu bimetallic nanoparticles capped with Beta vulgaris biomolecules were evaluated for their antifungal activity against Candida albicans via targeting its major virulence factors, including adherence, yeast to hyphae transition, extracellular enzyme secretion, biofilm formation, and the expression of genes related to these pathogenic traits by using standard methods. C. albicans is an opportunistic human fungal pathogen that causes significant morbidity and mortality, mainly in immunocompromised patients. The current antifungal therapy is limited with various shortcomings such as host toxicity and developing multidrug resistance. Therefore, the development of novel antifungal agents is urgently required. Furthermore, NPs were screened for cell viability and cytotoxicity effect. Antifungal susceptibility testing showed potent antifungal activity of the Ag-Cu bimetallic NPs with a significant inhibitory effect on adherence, yeast to hyphae transition, extracellular enzymes secretion, and formation of biofilms in C. albicans at sub-inhibitory and inhibitory concentrations. The RT-qPCR results at an MIC value of the NPs exhibited a varying degree of downregulation in expression levels of virulence genes. Results also revealed the dose-dependent effect of NPs on cellular viability (up to 100%) using MUSE cell analyzer. Moreover, the low cytotoxicity effect of bimetallic NPs has been observed using haemolytic assay. The overall results indicated that the newly synthesized Ag-Cu bimetallic NPs capped with Beta vulgaris are proven to possess a potent anticandidal activity, by affecting the vital pathogenic factors of C. albicans.

Green Synthesis of Zinc Oxide Nanoparticles Using Salvia officinalis Leaf Extract and Their Photocatalytic and Antifungal Activities

The facile bio-fabrication of zinc oxide (ZnO) nanoparticles (NPs) is described in this study using an aqueous leaf extract of Salvia officinalis L. as an efficient stabilizing/capping agent. Biosynthesis of nanomaterials using phytochemicals present in the plants has received great attention and is gaining significant importance as a possible alternative to the conventional chemical methods. The properties of the bio-fabricated ZnONPs were examined by different techniques, such as UV-visible spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction spectroscopy (XRD), energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and thermogravimetric/differential scanning calorimetry analysis (TGA/DTG). The photocatalytic activity of ZnONPs was investigated against methyl orange (MO) under UV light irradiation. Under optimum experimental conditions, ZnONPs exhibited 92.47% degradation of MO. Furthermore, the antifungal activity of bio-fabricated ZnONPs was determined against different clinical Candida albicans isolates following standard protocols of broth microdilution and disc diffusion assay. The susceptibility assay revealed that ZnONPs inhibit the growth of all the tested fungal isolates at varying levels with MIC values ranging from 7.81 to 1.95 µg/mL. Insight mechanisms of antifungal action appeared to be originated via inhibition of ergosterol biosynthesis and the disruption of membrane integrity. Thus, it was postulated that bio-fabricated ZnONPs have sustainable applications in developing novel antifungal agents with multiple drug targets. In addition, ZnONPs show efficient photocatalytic efficiency without any significant catalytic loss after the catalyst was recycled and reused multiple times.