Phytosynthesized nanoparticles represent a continuously increasing field of research, with numerous studies published each year. However, with the emerging interest in this area, the quality of the published works is also continuously increasing, switching from routine antioxidant or antimicrobial studies on trivial microbial lines to antibiotic-resistant strains or antitumoral studies. However, this increasing interest has not been not reflected in the studies regarding the toxicological effects of nanoparticles (NPs); this should be a subject of greatest interest, as the increasing administration of NPs in general (and phytosynthesized NPs in particular) could lead to their accumulation in the environment (soil, water and living organisms). The present review aims to present the most recent findings in the application of phytosynthesized NPs as antimicrobial and antitumoral agents, as well as the results regarding their toxicological potential.Materials 2020, 13, 574 2 of 32 in terms of their toxic potential towards target organisms (leading to their proposal as antimicrobial [4], antiviral [5] or cytogenotoxic agents [6]), their possible negative toxicity has not been thoroughly established. The present review aims to present the advances that have been recorded in the last year in the area of phytosynthesized nanoparticle applications and toxicity studies, as well to underline the shortcomings of the encountered approach. The literature review survey was performed on multiple databases (Scopus, Web of Science, ScienceDirect, SpringerLink, PubMed) and used the main keywords "nanoparticles" and "extract" (as the term "phytosynthesis" was not adopted by all the authors). From the returned results, only the works that were published in the last year (2019) were selected. Furthermore, a supplementary selection was performed by using keywords as "antimicrobial," "cytotoxicity," and "toxicology" (results presented in Figure 1). The results of this preliminary selection led to the return of approximately 1800 unique works (from all the databases). A preliminary validation was manually performed (by reading the keywords and abstract) in order to remove the "false-positive" results. The final validation was performed by reading the entire manuscript. The criteria for inclusion in the present review were: (i) the use of phytosynthesized nanoparticles that were obtained in the laboratory; (ii) the existence of analytical studies for the characterization of the nanoparticles; and (iii) in-depth applications reports. The review is structured in different chapters for each potential application that is related to the toxic effect of the metallic nanoparticles.

Stones are ones of the most ancient natural materials exploited by humans, with different uses, from tools to buildings, that have endured over time in better conditions than other objects belonging to cultural heritage. Given the importance of those silent witnesses of our past, as well as our duty to preserve all parts of cultural heritage for future generations, much effort was put into the development of materials for their consolidation, protection, self-cleaning, or restoration. Protection of ancient stone monuments and objects has gained the interest of researchers in the last decades in the field of conservation of cultural heritage. In this respect, the present paper aims to be a critical discussion regarding potential polymeric materials, which can be used in restorative and conservative approaches for stone materials of cultural heritage importance, against physical degradation phenomena. Recent advances in this area are presented, as well as the current bottle-necks and future development perspectives.

Cultural heritage (CH) represents human identity and evidence of the existence and activities that people have left over time. In response to the action of aggressive degrading factors, different materials have been developed and used to protect cultural heritage artifacts. The discovery of optimal materials for this purpose also raises several problems, mainly related to their compatibility with the support material, the most important aspect being that they must preserve their aesthetic characteristics. In this context, the present review paper aims to provide a critical discussion about the possibilities of using different inorganic nanomaterials and recipes for the conservation of cultural heritage objects of organic nature (such as paper, wood, and other support materials). In addition, also are covered different aspect concerning protection mechanisms and application methods as well as future perspectives in this area.

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Currently, hydroxyapatite is probably the most researched material, due to its multiple applications in medical, environmental, or cultural heritage, when the classical structure is modified and calcium is displaced partially or totally with different metals. By changing the classical structure of the hydroxyapatite, new morphologies can be obtained, thus allowing final applications different from those of the initial hydroxyapatite material. However, their properties should be tuned for the desired application. In this context, the present paper describes the synthesis and characterization (through energy-dispersive X-ray fluorescence, X-ray diffraction, FTIR, thermal analysis, and transmission electron microscopy) of iron oxide/manganese-containing phosphatic phase composite materials, developed in order to obtain the enhancement of final environmental applications (photodegradation of dyes, adsorption of organic compounds). The composite material was tested for photocatalytic properties, after embedding in hydrosoluble film-forming materials. Photocatalytic coatings show different activity during the photodecomposition of Methylene Blue, used as a model of a contaminant. The photocatalytic activities of the materials were discussed in relationship with both the phosphatic materials and the magnetic components. Finally, other environmental applications were studied for the developed materials (adsorption of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs—paracetamol and ibuprofen), revealing an enhancement of the adsorption capacity of the phosphatic material upon addition of the magnetic phase.

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