The Emerging Roles of Silver Nanoparticles to Target Viral Life Cycle and Detect Viral Pathogens

Along the line of recent vaccine advancements, new antiviral therapeutics are compelling to combat viral infection-related public health crises. Several properties of silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) such as low level of cytotoxicity, ease of tunability of the AgNPs in the ultra-small nanoscale size and shape through different convenient bottom-up chemistry approaches, high penetration of the composite with drug formulations into host cells has made AgNPs, a promising candidate for developing antivirals. In this review, we have highlighted the recent advancements in the AgNPs based nano-formulations to target cellular mechanisms of viral propagation, immune modulation of the host, and the ability to synergistically enhance the activity of existing antiviral drugs. On the other hand, we have discussed the recent advancements on AgNPs based detection of viral pathogens from clinical samples using inherent physicochemical properties. This article will provide an overview of our current knowledge on AgNPs based formulations that has promising potential for developing a counteractive strategy against emerging and existing viruses.