Facile green route of metallic nanoparticles using tannic acid: characterization and evaluation of the cytotoxic and antileishmanial activities
metallic nanoparticles, green route, leishmania amazonensis, nanotechnology
In this work, we focuse the investigation of the antileishmanial potential of noble metal nanoparticles (Ag and Au) synthesized by a green route, employing a polyphenolic compound (tannic acid, TA) as stabilizer. This investigation is due to the toxicity and ineffectiveness of the drugs currently administered in the parasitosis treatment, which are also expensive. Leishmaniases are severe parasitic diseases that affect people worldwide and are caused by protozoa of the Leishmania genus. Studies with these hybrid nanomaterials can lead to a range of possibilities to improve the therapeutic of the disease and, thus the patients life quality. The nanoparticles formation and their interaction with the tannin were monitored by spectroscopic and imaging techniques. In vitroassays with leishmania amazonensis promastigotes resulted in IC50 values of 221.81±97.08 µg mL-1 and 5.51±1.67 µg mL-1 for TA and AgNPs-TA respectively, thus confirming the increment of the antileishmanial activity about 40 times by AgNPs-TA, while AuNPs-TA did not present antileishmanial activity in none tested concentration.