Green Synthesis of Silver Nanoparticles Using Artemisia absinthium and Ziziphus vulgaris Extracts: Comparative Evaluation of Antibacterial, Anti-Inflammatory, Wound-Healing and Anticancer Activities

Background: Plant-mediated synthesis of silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) has emerged as a sustainable alternative to conventional chemical methods, offering environmentally friendly routes for producing nanomaterials with biomedical potential. This study employed aqueous extracts of Artemisia absinthium and Ziziphus vulgaris to synthesize AgNPs and evaluate their antibacterial, anti-inflammatory, anticancer, wound healing activities. Methods: Silver nanoparticles were synthesized by mixing aqueous plant extracts with 1 mM silver nitrate under ambient conditions. The formation of AgNPs was confirmed by UV–Visible spectroscopy, while morphology and structure were characterized using Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM), Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), and Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy. Moreover, the biosynthesized silver nanoparticles were further characterized by dynamic light scattering (DLS) and zeta potential measurements to determine hydrodynamic size and surface charge, and by X-ray diffraction (XRD) to confirm crystalline phase. Energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX) was also performed to assess elemental composition, providing a comprehensive physicochemical profile of the plant-mediated AgNPs. Antibacterial activity was tested against Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus using the agar well diffusion, minimal inhibitory concentration (MIC) and minimal bactericidal concentration (MBC) methods. Anti-inflammatory activity was evaluated by hypotonicity-induced human red blood cell (HRBC) membrane stabilization assay. Cytotoxic activity was evaluated using the MTT assay against a panel of human cell lines comprising MCF-7 breast cancer cells, A549 lung cancer cells, HepG2 hepatic cancer cells, and WI-38 non-cancerous lung fibroblasts to assess both anticancer potency and selectivity toward normal cells. Scratch wound healing was also evaluated. Results: The biosynthesized AgNPs showed surface plasmon resonance bands at 420–450 nm and mainly spherical particles with sizes of 15–22 nm. FTIR analysis indicated hydroxyl and carbonyl groups involved in nanoparticle reduction and stabilization. DLS and zeta potential analyses revealed monomodal size distributions and strongly negative surface charges (approximately −33 to −34 mV), indicating homogeneous, electrostatically stabilized colloids. XRD patterns confirmed a face-centered cubic metallic silver phase with a dominant (111) orientation, while EDX spectra verified the presence of elemental silver alongside signals from the plant-derived capping layer. The nanoparticles displayed remarkable antibacterial activity against both bacteria, strong inhibition of erythrocyte hemolysis, and dose-dependent cytotoxicity toward MCF-7 cells with IC50 values of 19–21 µg mL−1. MIC values ranged from 15.62 to 125 µg mL−1, with the lowest MIC observed for Ziziphus stem-mediated AgNPs (15.62 µg mL−1). All AgNPs samples exhibited enhanced wound healing, with closure percentages reaching up to 93.4% in Ziziphus leaves compared to WI-38 control (77.6%). Good colloidal stability was maintained for 90 days. Conclusions: These findings show that Artemisia absinthium and Ziziphus vulgaris are effective sources for green synthesis of stable AgNPs with multifunctional in vitro biological activities. This pro-healing effect is consistent with their demonstrated antimicrobial activity, supporting their dual functionality as both antibacterial and wound-healing materials. However, the biological and therapeutic activities require further in vivo confirmation. The results support their biomedical and environmentally sustainable nanotechnology applications.