Preface

Nanobiotechnology is gaining tremendous impetus in this era owing to its ability to modulate metals into their nano size, which efficiently changes their chemical, physical, and optical properties. Accordingly, considerable attention is being given to the development of novel strategies for the synthesis of different kinds of nanoparticles of specific composition and size using biological sources. However, most of the currently available techniques are expensive, environmentally harmful, and inefficient with respect to materials and energy use. Several factors, such as the method used for synthesis, pH, temperature, pressure, time, particle size, pore size, environment, and proximity, greatly influence the quality and quantity of the synthesized nanoparticles and their characterization and applications. In recent years, developing efficient green chemistry methods for synthesizing metal nanoparticles has become a major focus of researchers. They have investigated in order to find an eco-friendly technique for the production of well-characterized nanoparticles. One of the most considered methods is the production of metal nanoparticles using organisms. Among these organisms, plants seem to be the best candidates, and they are suitable for large-scale biosynthesis of nanoparticles. Nanoparticles produced by plants are more stable, and the synthesis rate is faster than in the case of microorganisms.

Moreover, the nanoparticles are more varied in shape and size than those produced by other organisms. The advantages of using plant and plant-derived materials for the biosynthesis of metal nanoparticles have interested researchers in investigating mechanisms of metal ions uptake and bio-reduction by plants and understanding the possible mechanism of metal nanoparticle formation in plants. In this review, most of the plants used in metal nanoparticle synthesis are shown.