Systemic Evaluation of Mechanism of Cytotoxicity in Human Colon Cancer HCT-116 Cells of Silver Nanoparticles Synthesized Using Marine Algae Ulva lactuca Extract

Assessment of Silver Nanoparticles Derived from Brown Algae Sargassum vulgare: Insight into Antioxidants, Anticancer, Antibacterial and Hepatoprotective Effect

Algae are used as safe materials to fabricate novel nanoparticles to treat some diseases. Marine brown alga Sargassum vulgare are used to fabricate silver nanoparticles (Sv/Ag-NPs). The characterization of Sv/Ag-NPs was determined by TEM, EDX, Zeta potential, XRD, and UV spectroscopy. The Sv/Ag-NPs were investigated as antioxidant, anticancer, and antibacterial activities against Gram-positive bacteria Bacillus mojavensis PP400982, Staphylococcus caprae PP401704, Staphylococcus capitis PP402689, and Staphylococcus epidermidis PP403851. The activity of the Sv/Ag-NPs was evaluated as hepatoprotective in vitro in comparison with silymarin. The UV-visible spectrum of Sv/Ag-NPs appeared at 442 nm; the size of Sv/Ag-NPs is in range between 6.90 to 16.97 nm, and spherical in shape. Different concentrations of Sv/Ag-NPs possessed antioxidant, anticancer activities against (HepG-2), colon carcinoma (HCT-116), cervical carcinoma (HeLa), and prostate carcinoma (PC-3) with IC50 50.46, 45.84, 78.42, and 100.39 µg/mL, respectively. The Sv/Ag-NPs induced the cell viability of Hep G2 cells and hepatocytes treated with carbon tetrachloride. The Sv/Ag-NPs exhibited antibacterial activities against Staphylococcus caprae PP401704, Staphylococcus capitis PP402689, and Staphylococcus epidermidis PP403851. This study strongly suggests the silver nanoparticles derived from Sargassum vulgare showed potential hepato-protective effect against carbon tetrachloride-induced liver cells, and could be used as anticancer and antibacterial activities.

Silver nanoparticles formulation of Marrubium alysson L. phenolic extract potentiates cytotoxicity through apoptosis with molecular docking study as Bcl-2 inhibitors

Crude or semi-purified extracts of plants can play a significant role as antitumor agents. They were used as stabilizing and reducing agents in the preparation of silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) that allows these particles to have more efficient cytotoxic activity. In the current study, the extract of Marrubium alysson L., a plant of common occurrence in Egypt was used to synthesize AgNPs for the first time, where comparison of anticancer activity of crude and phenolic extracts with the AgNPs were extensively studied against cancer cell lines PC-3 and HCT-116. Interestingly, AgNPs of the crude extract exhibited promising cytotoxicity with IC50 values of 10.4 and 16.3 μg/ml, while AgNPs of the phenolic extract exhibited very potent cytotoxicity with IC50 values of 2.66 and 1.34 μg/ml compared to Doxorubicin (as a standard reference drug) that exhibited IC50 values of 5.13 and 4.36 μg/ml, respectively against the tested cells. Additionally, AgNPs of the phenolic extract induced apoptosis in HCT-116 with a higher ratio than in PC-3 cells. It induced apoptosis in PC-3 cells by 79.3-fold change, while it induced total colon apoptotic cell death by 228.3-fold change compared to untreated control. Finally, the apoptotic activity of AgNPs of the phenolic extract in the treated PC-3 and HCT-116 cells was confirmed using RT-PCR. As a result, AgNPs of the phenolic extract could be considered a promising anticancer candidate through apoptosis-induction.Communicated by Ramaswamy H. Sarma.

Biohydrogen production via green silver nanoparticles synthesized through biomass of Ulva lactuca bloom

Ulva lactuca is a marine green seaweed. Its bloom based biomass accumulated in the İzmir bay and is collected by local authorities. In this investigation, an alternative solution was proposed to utilize the biomass of U. lactuca to produce biohydrogen via green synthesized silver nanoparticles. According to the results, the optimum conditions related to silver nanoparticle production such as pH, temperature, biomass concentration, silver nitrate concentrations, and incubation time were determined to be 11, 25 °C, 10 mg/mL, 4 mM, and 3 days, respectively. Effective conditions for biohydrogen production such as pH, temperature, agitation rate, and sodium borohydride concentration were found to be 7, 50 °C, 250 rpm and 150 mM, respectively. These parameters are also modelled with an artificial neural network. The data presented here provide recommendations for producing biohydrogen from waste algae and helping reduce carbon emissions for better environment and future.

Green Synthesis of Hexagonal Silver Nanoparticles Using a Novel Microalgae Coelastrella aeroterrestrica Strain BA_Chlo4 and Resulting Anticancer, Antibacterial, and Antioxidant Activities

Microalgae-mediated synthesis of nanoparticles (NPs) is an emerging nanobiotechnology that utilizes the biomolecular corona of microalgae as reducing and capping agents for NP fabrication. This study screened a novel microalgal strain for its potential to synthesize silver (Ag)-NPs and then assayed the biological activities of the NPs. Coelastrella aeroterrestrica strain BA_Chlo4 was isolated, purified, and morphologically and molecularly identified. Chemical composition of the algal extract was determined by GC-MS analysis. Ag-NPs were biosynthesized by C. aeroterrestrica BA_Chlo4 (C@Ag-NPs) and characterized using various techniques. Antiproliferative activity and the biocidal effect of C@Ag-NPs, C. aeroterrestrica algal extract, and chemically synthesized Ag-NPs (Ch@Ag-NPs) were explored, and the scavenging activity of C@Ag-NPs against free radicals was investigated. C@Ag-NPs were hexagonal, with a nanosize diameter of 14.5 ± 0.5 nm and a maximum wavelength at 404.5 nm. FTIR and GC-MS analysis demonstrated that proteins and polysaccharide acted as capping and reducing agents for C@Ag-NPs. X-ray diffraction, energy diffraction X-ray, and mapping confirmed the crystallinity and natural structure of C@Ag-NPs. The hydrodynamic diameter and charge of C@Ag-NPs was 28.5 nm and −33 mV, respectively. C@Ag-NPs showed significant anticancer activity towards malignant cells, with low toxicity against non-cancerous cells. In addition, C@Ag-NPs exhibited greater antioxidant activity and inhibitory effects against Gram-positive and -negative bacteria compared with the other tested treatments. These findings demonstrate, for first time, the potential of a novel strain of C. aeroterrestrica to synthesize Ag-NPs and the potent antioxidant, anticancer, and biocidal activities of these NPs.

Anti-colorectal cancer effects of seaweed-derived bioactive compounds

Seaweeds are classified as Chlorophyta, Rhodophyta, and Phaeophyta. They constitute a number of the most significant repositories of new therapeutic compounds for human use. Seaweed has been proven to possess diverse bioactive properties, which include anticancer properties. The present review focuses on colorectal cancer, which is a primary cause of cancer-related mortality in humans. In addition, it discusses various compounds derived from a series of seaweeds that have been shown to eradicate or slow the progression of cancer. Therapeutic compounds extracted from seaweed have shown activity against colorectal cancer. Furthermore, the mechanisms through which these compounds can induce apoptosis in vitro and in vivo were reviewed. This review emphasizes the potential utility of seaweeds as anticancer agents through the consideration of the capability of compounds present in seaweeds to fight against colorectal cancer.

Marine-Bioinspired Nanoparticles as Potential Drugs for Multiple Biological Roles

The increased interest in nanomedicine and its applicability for a wide range of biological functions demands the search for raw materials to create nanomaterials. Recent trends have focused on the use of green chemistry to synthesize metal and metal-oxide nanoparticles. Bioactive chemicals have been found in a variety of marine organisms, including invertebrates, marine mammals, fish, algae, plankton, fungi, and bacteria. These marine-derived active chemicals have been widely used for various biological properties. Marine-derived materials, either whole extracts or pure components, are employed in the synthesis of nanoparticles due to their ease of availability, low cost of production, biocompatibility, and low cytotoxicity toward eukaryotic cells. These marine-derived nanomaterials have been employed to treat infectious diseases caused by bacteria, fungi, and viruses as well as treat non-infectious diseases, such as tumors, cancer, inflammatory responses, and diabetes, and support wound healing. Furthermore, several polymeric materials derived from the marine, such as chitosan and alginate, are exploited as nanocarriers in drug delivery. Moreover, a variety of pure bioactive compounds have been loaded onto polymeric nanocarriers and employed to treat infectious and non-infectious diseases. The current review is focused on a thorough overview of nanoparticle synthesis and its biological applications made from their entire extracts or pure chemicals derived from marine sources.

Bimetallic p-ZnO/n-CuO nanocomposite synthesized using Aegle marmelos leaf extract exhibits excellent visible-light-driven photocatalytic removal of 4-nitroaniline and methyl orange

In the current study, the photocatalytic activity of bimetallic ZnO-CuO hetero-nanocomposite was evaluated and compared with the monometallic ZnO and CuO nanoparticles using 4-nitroaniline (4-NA) and methyl orange (MO). Bimetallic ZnO-CuO hetero-nanocomposite, ZnO, and CuO nanostructure were synthesized utilizing leaf extract of Aegle marmelos and characterized by transmission electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, and XPS. Benefiting from the p-n heterostructures formation, bimetallic ZnO-CuO hetero-nanocomposite exhibits an excellent photocatalytic activity against 4-NA as well as MO compared to pure ZnO and CuO. In particular, bimetallic ZnO-CuO hetero-nanocomposite expressed the highest photocatalytic activity by reducing 90% of 4-NA in 20 min and by degrading 96% of MO in 10 min, whereas 65% reduction of 4-NA in 30 min and 93% degradation of MO in 45 min was exhibited by CuO and 48% reduction of 4-NA in 30 min and 98% degradation of MO in 50 min was exhibited by ZnO. Moreover, bimetallic ZnO-CuO hetero-nanocomposite maintains excellent photocatalytic activity even after five cycles indicating its stability as photocatalyst and reusability. Based on the experimental findings, bimetallic ZnO-CuO hetero-nanocomposite could be used as a photocatalyst for wastewater treatment with excellent regeneration efficiency.

Sustainable Synthesis of Silver Nanoparticles Using Marine Algae for Catalytic Degradation of Methylene Blue

Herein, Sargassum coreanum (marine algae)-mediated silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) were successfully synthesized by a simple reduction method. The synthesized AgNPs were characterized using ultraviolet-visible spectroscopy, attenuated total reflection Fourier transformed infrared spectroscopy, X-ray diffractometry, field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM) with energy-dispersive X-ray (EDX) spectroscopy, and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HR-TEM) analysis. The acquired colloidal AgNPs were strongly absorbed around 420 nm and displayed brown color under visible light. The XRD pattern of AgNPs exposed their face-centered cubic geometry along with crystalline nature. The HRTEM images of synthesized AgNPs confirmed the mean particle size of 19 nm with a distorted spherical shape, and the calculated interlayer distance (d-spacing value) was about 0.24 nm. Further, the catalytic degradation of methylene blue using sodium borohydride and AgNPs was monitored using UV–vis spectroscopy. The result revealed that AgNPs performed as a superior catalyst, which completely degraded MB in 20 min. The rate constant for MB degradation was calculated to be 0.106 min−1, demonstrating that the marine algae-mediated AgNPs had outstanding catalytic activity. This approach is easy and environmentally benign, which can be applied for environmental-based applications such as dye degradation and pollutant detoxification.