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In today's time, nanotechnology is being utilized to develop efficient products in the cosmetic and pharmaceutical industries. The application of nanotechnology in transforming bioactive material into nanoscale products substantially improves their biocompatibility and enhances their effectiveness, even when used in lower quantities. There is a significant global market potential for these nanoparticles because of which research teams around the world are interested in the advancements in nanotechnology. These recent advances have shown that fungi can synthesize metallic nanoparticles via extra- and intracellular mechanisms. Moreover, the chemical and physical properties of novel metallic nanoparticles synthesised by fungi are improved by regulating the surface chemistry, size, and surface morphology of the nanoparticles. Compared to chemical synthesis, the green synthesis of nanoparticles offers a safe and sustainable approach for developing nanoparticles. Biosynthesised nanoparticles can potentially enhance the bioactivities of different cellular fractions, such as plant extracts, fungal extracts, and metabolites. The nanoparticles synthesised by fungi offer a wide range of applications. Recently, the biosynthesis of nanoparticles using fungi has become popular, and various ways are being explored to maximize nanoparticles synthesis. This manuscript reviews the characteristics and applications of the nanoparticles synthesised using the different taxa of fungi. The key focus is given to the applications of these nanoparticles in medicine and cosmetology., Competing Interests: The authors report no conflicts of interest in this work., (© 2022 Dhanjal et al.)

The use of metallic nanoparticles in engineering and biomedicine disciplines has gained considerable attention. Scientists are exploring new synthesis protocols of these substances considering their small size and lucrative antimicrobial potential. Among the most economical techniques of synthesis of metallic nanoparticles via chemical routes, which includes the use of chemicals as metal reducing agents, is considered to generate nanoparticles possessing toxicity and biological risk. This limitation of chemically synthesized nanoparticles has engendered the exploration for the ecofriendly synthesis process. Biological or green synthesis approaches have emerged as an effective solution to address the limitations of conventionally synthesized nanoparticles. Nanoparticles synthesized via biological entities obtained from plant extracts exhibit superior effect in comparison to chemical methods. Recently, conifer extracts have been found to be effective in synthesizing metallic nanoparticles through a highly regulated process. The current review highlights the importance of conifers and its extracts in synthesis of metallic nanoparticles. It also discusses the different applications of the conifer extract mediated metallic nanoparticles.

Metal nanoparticles (MNPs) are popular in different research fields due to their unique physical and chemical properties and superior antimicrobial, anticancer, antioxidant, larvicidal, and catalytic potentials. Although conventional wet methods like colloidal synthesis, calcination, and spark ablation for synthesizing MNPs are effective, their synthesis uses an array of reducing and stabilizing agents and gases, making the process tedious. Additionally, metal nanoparticles induce oxidative stress through reactive oxygen species (ROS), showing high toxicity. Research and development in green chemistry have gained momentum and massive attention because of being efficient, clean, economical, environment-friendly, and free of hazardous byproducts. Recently, seed extracts in-lieu of chemical stabilizers and reducing agents have become popular because of the single-step green synthesis of MNPs. Seeds provide the researchers with a cost-effective alternate to other biological methods due to low maintenance costs, culture/growth independence for biomass, and diversity of phytochemicals as reducing and capping agents. Thus, effective green synthesis approaches are considered sustainable for MNP synthesis. This review depicts the literature on the challenges associated with metal and metal oxide nanoparticles and discusses their synthesis using seed extracts. The application section of the review discusses the antimicrobial, anticancer, and larvicidal activities of seed extracted-synthesized metallic nanoparticles. Furthermore, insights into the different biological potentials of the synthesized green MNPs have also been discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]