NOVEL BALANITES AEGYPTIACA MESOCARP SYNTHESIZED SILVER NANOPARTICLES: FORMATION, CHARACTERIZATION, ANTIMICROBIAL, CYTOTOXICITY AND ANTIVIRAL EFFECTS.

A novel, simple, cost effective, non-toxic and environmental friendly technique was developed for the synthesized silver nanoparticles using Balauites aegyptiaca (L.) Del mesocarp aqueous extract at 80 °C. UV-visible spectroscopic analysis was caried out to assess the fromation of the silver nanoparticles. The green synthesized nanoparticles were characterized using Zetasizer, Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR), Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) equipped with Energy Dispersive Spectroscopy (EDS) in addition to Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM). The antimicrobial, cytotoxic and antiviral actvities of the Balauites aegyptiaca nanoparticles have been investigated. This revealed that the nanoparticle suspension posessess cytotoxic activity against HepG-2 and MCF-7 cell lines, with IC50 being 19.1 μg and 40.1 μg, respectively, in addidtion to moderate antiviral activity against HAV-10 virus. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]