Phytoextract-Based Synthesis of Selenium Nanorods Using Chia Seed and Evaluation of Their Photocatalytic and Cytotoxic Attributes

This research suggests a simple and safe method for the manufacture of selenium nanorods (Se-NRs) usage of chia seed extract as a stabilizing and reducing agent. The authenticity of the synthesized product was confirmed by UV-Vis, FTIR, Zeta potential, TEM, FESEM, XRD, and EDX studies. The UV-Vis spectroscopy data confirmed the fabrication of Se-NRs by showing an absorption band at 265.5 nm and a band gap of about 4.38 eV. XRD results showed the structural nature of nanoparticles with an amorphous pattern and without crystals. Also, with the help of TEM and FESEM images, the morphology of nanomaterials was determined as a mixture of nanorods and nanospheres with an about diameter of 50 to 62 nm. The process of photodegradation of methylene blue (MB) dye by Se-NRs catalyst irradiated by UVA light was explored and the degradation percentage was reported to be about 80% after 105 min. The study of cytotoxicity on the Huh-7 cell line showed an IC₅₀ value of about 576.2 µg/mL after 24 h.