Nanomedicine Applications of Selenium Nanoparticles: Small is Big

Document Type : Mini-reviews

Author

Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Pharmacy, Heliopolis University, Cairo, Egypt.

Abstract

Selenium (Se) is an essential micronutrient required for proper functioning of biological and metabolic mechanism within the human body. Deficiency of Se leads several harmful disorders such as cancer, neurological, Alzheimer, muscular, immune, etc. Recently, selenium nanoparticles (SeNPs) attracted the interest of many researchers due to their biocompatibility, bioavailability, and low toxicity. Therefore, due to their higher bioactivity, SeNPs are largely being used in various biomedical applications. Generally, SeNPs can be synthesized by physical, chemical, and biological methods. However, the biologically synthesized SeNPs demonstrate greater compatibility with human organs and tissues. The effect of size, shape, and the method employed for their synthesis on their applications in biological systems has been explored by many researchers. This review highlights their various applications in the biomedical field such as in the treatment of bacterial infections, cancer, and diabetes. They can also act as chemopreventive agents, antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory agents, antiapoptotic and antioxidants.
Keywords:

Keywords

Main Subjects