Silver Nanoparticles: An Instantaneous Solution for Anticancer Activity against Human Liver (HepG2) and Breast (MCF-7) Cancer Cells

Abstract

Cancer is a cataclysmic disease that affects not only the target organ, but also the whole body. Metal-based nanoparticles (NPs) have recently emerged as a better option for the treatment of this deadly disease. Accordingly, the present work describes a means to control the growth of cancer cells by using colloidal silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) processed via homemade solutions and the characterization of these materials. The AgNPs may become an instantaneous solution for the treatment of these deadly diseases and to minimize or remove these problems. The AgNPs exhibit excellent control of the growth rate of human liver (HepG2) and breast (MCF-7) cancer cells, even at a very low concentrations. The cytotoxic effects of AgNPs on HepG2 and MCF-7 cancer cells were dose dependent (2–200 μg/mL), as evaluated using MTT and NRU assays. The production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) was increased by 136% and 142% in HepG2 and MCF-7 cells treated with AgNPs, respectively. The quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) data for both cell types (HepG2 and MCF-7) after exposure to AgNPs showed up- and downregulation of the expression of apoptotic (p53, Bax, caspase-3) and anti-apoptotic (BCl2) genes; moreover, their roles were described. This work shows that NPs were successfully prepared and controlled the growth of both types of cancer cells.

Light-emitting diode (LED)-directed green synthesis of silver nanoparticles and evaluation of their multifaceted clinical and biological activities

“… 79 AgNPs mediate cytotoxicity by effectively activating the caspase cascade and induce apoptosis in various cancer cells. 80 We also found the extraordinary potential of AgNPs particularly Y-DS-AgNPs in inducing caspase-3 gene expression and capsase-3/7 activities.…”

Evaluation of Anticancer Potential of Silver Chloride Nanoparticles Biosynthesized by Penicillium chrysogenum

“…According to previous studies, the toxicity levels of AgNPs on HepG2 cells are variable. IC 50 values of AgNPs against HepG2 cells have been reported to be 9.69 µg/mL by Al-Khedhairy et al (2022) [40] , 75 μg/mL by Ahmadian et al (2018) [41] , and 2.764 µg/ mL by Faedmaleki et al (2014) [42] . This variation in IC 50 values could be related to the size, surface properties, distribution, and morphological shape of NPs.…”

Drug delivery and anticancer activity of biosynthesised mesoporous Fe2O3nanoparticles

“…The plate was incubated at 37°C with 5% CO2 for 3 h. The MTT medium was extracted, and the formazan crystals were dissolved by adding 100 μl (DMSO (CH3)2SO, Sigma–Aldrich) dimethyl sulfoxide to each well of the plate and then stored in a dark place at 25°C for 15 min. Finally, the absorption of soluble formazan at 570 nm (DYNEX MRX) was measured using a microplate reader [69].…”