General information
The present project is focused on the “green synthesis” of nanoparticles (NPs) by cyanobacterial phycocyanin and evaluation of their physicochemical and biological properties. In the last decade, NPs “green synthesis” offers a cost-effective and ecologically clean alternative to physicochemical methods. In this context, cyanobacteria and their components have potential to apply for NPs biosynthesis. In this project for the first time the synthesis of various NPs (Ag, ZnO, TiO2) using phycocyanin extracted from cyanobacteria Limnospira maxima and Arthrospira platensis isolated in Armenia will be performed. Physicochemical analysis of these NPs will be carried out by various advanced instrumental methods. Moreover, membrane separation techniques will be employed for the NPs fractionation providing a novel insight in the correlation between the NPs sizes and their properties. The evaluation of NPs antimicrobial potential against conditionally pathogenic bacteria and various fungi will be done. The NPs hemolytic and anticancer properties will be evaluated. Phycocyanin-derived NPs may have promising potential for their future applications in biotechnology, biomedicine, and pharmacy, and the results obtained will have contribution to the development of green nanotechnology in Armenia.
