Facile synthesis of silver nanoparticles using Azolla caroliniana, their cytotoxicity, catalytic, optical and antibacterial activity V.N. Anjana a,b , Ebey P Koshy b,⇑ , Beena Mathew c a Department of Chemistry, Sree Sankara Vidyapeedom College, Valayanchirangara 683 556, India b Department of Chemistry, St. Joseph’s College, Moolamattom, Arakulam P.O., Idukki 685591, India c School of Chemical Science, Mahatma Gandhi University, Kottayam 686 560, India article info Article history: Received 9 December 2019 Received in revised form 21 December 2019 Accepted 24 December 2019 Available online xxxx Keywords: Green route Azolla caroliniana Silver nano particles Cyclic voltammetry Catalytic activity abstract In this study, eco-friendly synthesis of silver nano particles was achieved by a novel, facile route using Azolla caroliniana extract which act as a capping as well as reducing agent. Different synthetic parameters and the optical properties of the synthesized AgNPs was also studied. The characterization of synthesized AgNPs was carried out by Ultraviolet–Visible (UV–Vis) spectroscopy, Fourier Transform Infrared spec- troscopy (FTIR), X-ray Diffraction studies (XRD), and Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM). TEM stud- ies verified that the AgNPs formed have crystalline nature and spherical shape with an average diameter of 23 nm. The cyclic voltammetry profile of AgNPs modified electrode in NaOH depicted prominent redox peaks evidencing an impressive electrochemical response. The AgNPs shows high catalytic activity towards reduction of Crystal Violet and Fuchine which are highly polluting organic compounds. In addi- tion to that the prepared AgNPs exhibited strong antibacterial activity against the tested microbes and also exhibits in vitro cytotoxicity against lymphoma ascites cells. Ó 2020 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. Selection and peer-review under responsibility of the scientific committee of the International Confer- ence on the Science and Technology of Advanced Materials. 1. Introduction Nanotechnology gains much interest in modern life with its wide application in various sectors like electronic, biomedical, agri- cultural, food, cosmetics etc. [1,2]. Nano particles can be synthe- sised by countless methods such as physical, chemical, photochemical and biological method [3]. Among these green syn- thesis of nano particles using plant extract gains much interest due to its clean, nontoxic and eco-friendly nature. Of all the metal nanoparticles silver nano particles are having catalytic, optical, antibacterial, electrical as well as anticancerous activity [4,5]. Azolla caroliniana, also called as mosquito fern, is a moving, aquatic fern. It can also be used for the production of hydrogen fuel and also for the reduction of ammonia volatilization which con- voys the application of chemical nitrogen fertilizer [6,7]. Synthetic dyes used in various industries such as textile, paper, food, cosmetics and pharmaceutical fields are pollutants [1,8]. The discharge from these industries results in environmental pollution and also hazardous to the growth of living beings [9]. Fuchsine and crystal violet are the prominent organic dyes used in textile indus- tries. Even though there are reports on silver and gold nanoparti- cles which shows the ability to degrade various organic dyes, there have been no attempts made till date to study the degrada- tion of Fuchsine or rosaniline hydrochloride, a magenta dye with chemical formula C 20 H 19 N 3 HCl [10,11]. In-vitro anticancer properties inherent in the prepared silver can be tested against lymphoma ascites cells [12]. Electro chemical response of the silver nano particles found various application and also used as a biosen- sors for glucose detection [13] and have been widely employed as a tool for diabetes mellitus control due to its rapid response, accurate, selective and low cost per analysis. 2. Materials and methods 2.1. Materials All the chemicals used were of analytical grade. Silver nitrate (AgNO3; 99.8%), Crystal Violet, Fuchsine and Sodium borohydride (NaBH 4 ) were purchase from Merk India Ltd. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.matpr.2019.12.250 2214-7853/Ó 2020 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. Selection and peer-review under responsibility of the scientific committee of the International Conference on the Science and Technology of Advanced Materials. ⇑ Corresponding author. E-mail address: epkosh@gmail.com (E.P Koshy). Materials Today: Proceedings xxx (xxxx) xxx Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Materials Today: Proceedings journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/matpr Please cite this article as: V. N. Anjana, E. P. Koshy and B. Mathew, Facile synthesis of silver nanoparticles using Azolla caroliniana, their cytotoxicity, cat- alytic, optical and antibacterial activity, Materials Today: Proceedings, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.matpr.2019.12.250