Silver
nanoparticles (SNPs), owing to their wide range of biomedical
applications, have recently attracted remarkable interest for use
in cancer nanomedicine. The present research work investigated the
anticancer activity of phytosynthesized SNPs against human cancer
cell lines. Phytosynthesis of SNPs was achieved by using an aqueous
extract of Salacia chinensis (SC) bark as a green
source to reduce silver nitrate to silver nanoparticles. Characterization
of synthesized nanoparticles demonstrated a UV–visible peak
at 443 nm, ζ-potential (zetasizer) of −25.6 ± 0.34
and particle size (transmission electron microscopy analysis) in the
range of 40–80 nm, which validates formation of stable silver
nanoparticles. The absence of cytotoxicity against normal human fibroblasts
and blood erythrocytes confirms the biocompatible nature of green
synthesized SNPs. In vitro anticancer assay demonstrated IC50 values of 6.31, 4.002, 5.228, 8.452, 14.37, 7.46, and 6.55 μg/mL
against liver (Hep G2), lungs (L-132), pancreas (MIA-Pa-Ca-2), breast
(MDA-MB-231), oral (KB cells), prostate (PC-3), and cervical (HeLa)
cancer cell lines respectively, which confirms its potent anticancer
action. The results of the present study give an experimental proof
that the SC mediated green synthesized SNPs could serve as a promising
anticancer agent to overcome limitations of existing conventional
cancer chemotherapeutics.
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