Divjot Kour
Amrik Singh Ahluwalia
Ajar Nath Yadav
Abdelhadi Abdallah Abdelhadi- 1University Centre for Research and Development, Chandigarh University, Gharuan, Mohali, Punjab, India
- 2Department of Botany, Panjab University, Chandigarh, India
- 3Department of Biotechnology, Dr. Khem Singh Gill Akal College of Agriculture, Eternal University, Baru Sahib, Himachal Pradesh, India
- 4Department of Biotechnology, Graphic Era Deemed to be University, Dehradun, Uttarakhand, India
- 5Faculty of Agriculture, Cairo University, Giza, Egypt
Editorial on the Research Topic
Harnessing microbes for eco-friendly nanoparticle production and sustainable applications
Industrialization and urbanization are major causes of environmental deterioration. There is a need for apt and sustainable alternatives to overcome environmental challenges. The emerging field of nanotechnology is transforming every aspect of human life. It is being recognized as the industrial revolution of the 21st century. It can transform the way society manufactures goods and provide better solutions to major environmental issues such as waste management and pollution. In recent years, nanostructured materials have attracted considerable interest due to their unique features compared to their polycrystalline counterparts (Khan et al., 2024). The ability to tailor the morphology, microstructure, composition, and physicochemical characteristics of nanomaterials through well-controlled approaches makes this field even more fascinating (Liu et al., 2016). Moreover, the growing need for sustainable, non-toxic and ecologically safe methods of nanoparticles (NPs) synthesis to reduce the negative environmental impacts while increasing energy productivity is a major area of research (Kour et al., 2024). High-energy physical and chemical procedures involving the use of toxic chemicals have been employed for the synthesis of NPs. These approaches result in high production costs and pose environmental risks. Green synthesis of NPs that exploits the metabolic potential of microbial entities such as actinomycetes, algae, bacteria and fungi is a promising approach for overcoming ecological challenges. Microbial communities are gifted with the innate ability to biosynthesize NPs and can be regarded as valuable biofactories for NP synthesis (Purohit et al., 2019).
This Research Topic was designed in Microbiotechnology to highlight the potential applications of the emerging area of research “Microbial Nanotechnology” for future sustainability. The articles in this Research Topic discuss microbe-mediated NP synthesis and their role as antimicrobial agents, in biofuel production and other applications. The original research by Sharmila et al. focused on green synthesis routes of antimicrobial compounds NPs from endophytes and antagonistic microbes as an innovative strategy for managing plant diseases caused by various phytopathogens including bacteria, fungi and viruses. The second research article by Do et al. explored the green synthesis of AgNPs using extracellular polymeric substances produced by Graesiella emersonii KNUA204. The findings of the study suggest the microalgal strain's potential for dual biomass utilization, integrating biofuel production with nanomaterial synthesis. Plokhovska et al. synthesized AgNPs from the plant growth-promoting bacterium Pseudomonas sp. Z9.3 and highlighted the potential of biosynthesized NPs as antimicrobial agents. Another original work by Gu et al., presented a novel concept of quantum dot synthesis mediated by Lysinibacillus boronitolerans QD4. Quantum dots are special nanomaterials that differ from bulk materials. They show unique optical and electronic properties due to quantum confinement, which confers them discrete energy levels. Microbe-mediated synthesis of quantum dots is an economical, environmentally-friendly production method with an extensive range of industrial applications. Rai et al., reviewed pycnidial fungi in the biosynthesis of NPs and highlighted their important applications in different sectors such as agriculture, the environment, industry, and medicine.
The utilization of microbes for the creation of NPs for promising applications, such as enhancing plant defenses against biotic stress, combating abiotic stress, nano-bioremediation and more is a new development in the realm of biotechnology and a breakthrough for advanced research in nanotechnology (Salem, 2023). The integration of diverse microbial groups and enzymes with nanotechnology provides a more sustainable method for the bioremediation of industrial effluents, and this approach can be scaled up for commercial use. It can even be extended to biohydrogen and bioelectricity generation from industrial waste, which would boost the industrial economy through green energy generation (Mandeep and Shukla, 2020). The integration of agri-nanotechnology generates a plethora of new possibilities to address global challenges in food production and sustainability (Mishra et al., 2017). NPs can be used in the synthesis of nanocapsulation and nanoformulations for next-generation pesticides and fertilizers which provide site-specific, controlled delivery of active ingredients to protect plants against drought, temperature fluctuations, and phytopathogens. NP-based smart delivery systems in the form of nanopesticides and nanofertilizers open new avenues for agro-sustainability (Kashyap et al., 2018).
The cellular, biochemical, and molecular mechanisms that mediate the biosynthesis of NPs should be studied to improve their synthesis rate and characteristics. Synthetic biology approaches and the engineering of microbial pathways to produce more valuable NPs equipped with novel functions for agriculture, the environment, industry, and scientific research will be useful in the future (Carmona et al., 2023). Taken together, the articles in this Research Topic highlight the potential of green nanotechnology for a sustainable future. Although nanotechnology provides innovative and promising solutions, it is important to understand the short and long-term impacts of NPs on humans and the environment to fully explore this technology's valuable impact on societal progress (Babatunde et al., 2020). Collaborative efforts between governmental regulatory agencies and the scientific community are fundamental to product design, development and commercialization, and acceptance by society.
Author contributions
DK: Conceptualization, Writing – original draft. ASA: Writing – review & editing. AY: Writing – review & editing. AAA: Writing – review & editing, Resources.
Conflict of interest
The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.
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References
Babatunde, D. E., Denwigwe, I. H., Babatunde, O. M., Gbadamosi, S. L., Babalola, I. P., and Agboola, O. (2020). Environmental and societal impact of nanotechnology. IEEE Access 8, 4640–4667. doi: 10.1109/ACCESS.2019.2961513
Carmona, M., Poblete-Castro, I., Rai, M., and Turner, R. J. (2023). Opportunities and obstacles in microbial synthesis of metal nanoparticles. Microb. Biotechnol. 16, 871–876. doi: 10.1111/1751-7915.14254
Kashyap, P. L., Rai, P., Kumar, R., Sharma, S., Jasrotia, P., Srivastava, A. K., et al. (2018). “Microbial nanotechnology for climate resilient agriculture,” in Microbes for Climate Resilient Agriculture, eds. P. L. Kashyap, K. A. Srivastava, P. S. Tiwari, and S. Kumar (Hoboken, NJ: Wiley Online Library), 279–344. doi: 10.1002/9781119276050.ch13
Khan, S. S., Kour, D., Kaur, T., Sharma, A., Kumar, S., Kumari, S., et al. (2024). Microbial nanotechnology for precision nanobiosynthesis: innovations, current opportunities and future perspectives for industrial sustainability. Curr. Microbiol. 81:251. doi: 10.1007/s00284-024-03772-z
Kour, D., Khan, S. S., Kumari, S., Singh, S., Khan, R. T., Kumari, C., et al. (2024). Microbial nanotechnology for agriculture, food, and environmental sustainability: current status and future perspective. Folia Microbiol. 69, 491–520. doi: 10.1007/s12223-024-01147-2
Liu, Y., Nam Ong, C., and Xie, J. (2016). Emerging nanotechnology for environmental applications. Nanotechnol. Rev. 5, 1–2. doi: 10.1515/ntrev-2015-0072
Mandeep and Shukla, P.. (2020). Microbial nanotechnology for bioremediation of industrial wastewater. Front. Microbiol. 11:590631. doi: 10.3389/fmicb.2020.590631
Mishra, S., Keswani, C., Abhilash, P., Fraceto, L. F., and Singh, H. B. (2017). Integrated approach of agri-nanotechnology: challenges and future trends. Front. Plant Sci. 8:471. doi: 10.3389/fpls.2017.00471
Purohit, J., Chattopadhyay, A., and Singh, N. K. (2019). “Green synthesis of microbial nanoparticle: approaches to application,” in Microbial Nanobionics. Nanotechnology in the Life Sciences, ed. R. Prasad (Cham: Springer), 35–60. doi: 10.1007/978-3-030-16534-5_3
Keywords: biotechnological potential, commercialization, green synthesis, microbial nanotechnology, sustainable future
Citation: Kour D, Ahluwalia AS, Yadav AN and Abdelhadi AA (2025) Editorial: Harnessing microbes for eco-friendly nanoparticle production and sustainable applications. Front. Microbiol. 16:1687584. doi: 10.3389/fmicb.2025.1687584
Received: 17 August 2025; Accepted: 09 September 2025;
Published: 25 September 2025.
Edited and reviewed by: Eric Altermann, Massey University, School of Veterinary Science, New Zealand
Copyright © 2025 Kour, Ahluwalia, Yadav and Abdelhadi. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) and the copyright owner(s) are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
*Correspondence: Divjot Kour, a291cmRpdmpvdEBnbWFpbC5jb20=