Biological synthesis of selenium and germanium nanoparticles by xylotrophic basidiomycetes

Abstract

Cultivated Lentinus edodes, Pleurotus ostreatus, Ganoderma lucidum, and Grifila frondosa basidiomycetes were shown to be capable of forming nanoparticles when grown on seleniumand germanium-containing media (Na₂SeO₃ and GeO₂, respectively). The influence of different concentrations of selenium and germanium compounds on the colony growth and biomass accumulation of mushrooms was studied under deep and solid-phase cultivation. Deep cultivation of basidiomycetes on selenium-containing media leads to the formation of Se⁰ nanospheres; the predominant formation inside cells was performed by L. edodes and G. frondosa, and the formation in the culture medium was performed by G. lucidum and P. ostreatus. The diameters of the nanoparticles synthesized by G. lucidum and other macromycetes were 20–50 nm and 50–320 nm, respectively. The G. frondosa basidiomycetes cultivated on germanium-containing media formed nanospheres with diameters from 50 nm to 250 nm in the culture medium. In addition, P. ostreatus accumulated a large number of germanium nanoparticles in mycelium.