In Situ Generation of Metal-Oxide Nanoparticles on Top of a Green-Synthesized Tellurium Nanowire Template and the Biomedical Study of the Synergetic Structure

Two of the major concerns that the healthcare system is facing nowadays are cancer and antimicrobial resistance (AMR) to antibiotics. Nanotechnology appears as a suitable solution, which might overcome some limitations of current available treatments. Despite of the advances in the nanoscale, there is a need to find alternatives to the traditional synthesis of nanomaterials, which suppose a threat to both the environment and society. In this context, Green Nanotechnology is presented as an answer, with cost-effective and environmentally-friendly approaches for nanoparticles synthesis.

In the present work, starch-mediated Tellurium nanowires were employed as a template for the in-situ growth of palladium and platinum nanostructures. The noble metal-chalcogenide nanocomposites were characterized for their biomedical applications, with both green-mediated synergetic composites showing antibacterial activity against AMR bacterial strains, both Gram negative (MDR Escherichia coli) and positive (Methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus) bacteria, at concentrations from 10 to 100 µg/mL over a 24-hour time period. Moreover, cell studies were done with human dermal fibroblast (HDF) and melanoma cells for 5 days, showing no significant cytotoxic effect at concentrations up to 25 µg/mL, while triggering a dose-dependent anticancer effect in the same rage of concentrations. Therefore, the use of noble metal-chalcogenide nanocomposites is proposed as a novel green nanotechnological-based platform for biomedical applications.