Anti-Cancer and Anti-Inflammatory Potential of the Green Synthesized Silver Nanoparticles of the Red Sea Sponge Phyllospongia lamellosa Supported by Metabolomics Analysis and Docking Study

Anti-oncogenic Potential and Inflammation Modulatory Response of Green Synthesized Biocompatible Silver Nanoparticles

This study presents a novel approach to synthesizing silver nanoparticles (Ag NPs) using a solution combustion synthesis (SCS) method with Catharanthus roseus (C. roseus) leaf extract. The NPs were thoroughly characterized through X-ray diffraction (XRD), Scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Energy dispersive X-ray (EDX), Transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and Selected area electron diffraction (SAED), elucidating their crystal structure. Notably, the synthesized Ag NPs exhibited a significant dose-dependent decline in viability of the MDA-MB 231 breast cancer cell line, with an IC50 value of 13.3 μg/mL, underscoring their potential as potent anticancer agent. Beyond cytotoxicity, the study pioneers an investigation into the biocompatibility of Ag NPs by blood hemolsysis, providing critical insights into their safety and biomedical applicability. Furthermore, this research uncovers a distinctive facet of Ag NPs, revealing their inhibitory effects on the inflammatory enzyme secretory phospholipase A2 (sPLA2), a recognized biomarker for breast cancer. The demonstrated in vitro and in vivo inhibition of sPLA2 highlights the multifaceted potential of Ag NPs in not only targeting cancer cells but also modulating inflammatory responses associated with breast cancer, positioning the study at the forefront of advancements in nanomedicine and cancer therapeutics.

Phytochemical investigation and anti-inflammatory potential of Atriplex leucoclada Boiss

BACKGROUND

The plant kingdom has long been considered a valuable source for therapeutic agents, however, some plant species still untapped and need to be phytochemically and biologically explored. Although several Atriplex species have been investigated in depth, A. leucoclada, a halophytic plant native to Saudi Arabian desert, remains to be explored for its phytochemical content and biological potentials. Herein, the current study investigated the metabolic content and the anti-inflammatory potential of A. leucoclada.

METHODS

Powdered aerial parts of the plant were defatted with n-hexane then the defatted powder was extracted with 80% methanol. n-Hexane extract (ATH) was analyzed using GC-MS, while the defatted extract (ATD) was subjected to different chromatographic methods to isolate the major phytoconstituents. The structures of the purified compounds were elucidated using different spectroscopic methods including advanced NMR techniques. Anti-inflammatory activity of both extracts against COX-1 and COX-2 enzymes were examined in vitro. Molecular docking of the identified compounds into the active sites of COX-1 and COX-2 enzymes was conducted using pdb entries 6Y3C and 5IKV, respectively.

RESULTS

Phytochemical investigation of ATD extract led to purification and identification of nine compounds. Interestingly, all the compounds, except for 20-hydroxy ecdysone (1), are reported for the first time from A. leucoclada, also luteolin (6) and pallidol (8) are isolated for the first time from genus Atriplex. Inhibitory activity of ATD and ATH extracts against COX-1 and COX-2 enzymes revealed concentration dependent activity of both fractions with IC50 41.22, 14.40 μg/ml for ATD and 16.74 and 5.96 μg/ml for ATH against COX-1 and COX-2, respectively. Both extracts displayed selectivity indices of 2.86 and 2.80, respectively as compared to 2.56 for Ibuprofen indicating a promising selectivity towards COX-2. Molecular docking study supported in vitro testing results, where purified metabolites showed binding affinity scores ranged from -9 to -6.4 and -8.5 to -6.6 kcal/mol for COX-1 and 2, respectively, in addition the binding energies of GC-MS detected compounds ranged from -8.9 to -5.5 and -8.3 to -5.1 kcal/mol for COX-1 and 2, respectively as compared to Ibuprofen (-6.9 and -7.5 kcal/mol, respectively), indicating high binding affinities of most of the compounds. Analysis of the binding orientations revealed variable binding patterns depending on the nature of the compounds. Our study suggested A. leucoclada as a generous source for anti-inflammatory agents.

Comparative molecular docking and toxicity between carbon-capped metal oxide nanoparticles and standard drugs in cancer and bacterial infections

Introduction

Nanoparticles (NPs) are of great interest in the design of various drugs due to their high surface-to-volume ratio, which result from their unique physicochemical properties. Because of the importance of examining the interactions between newly designed particles with different targets in the case of various diseases, techniques for examining the interactions between these particles with different targets, many of which are proteins, are now very common.

Methods

In this study, the interactions between metal oxide nanoparticles (MONPs) covered with a carbon layer (Ag2O3, CdO, CuO, Fe2O3, FeO, MgO, MnO, and ZnO NPs) and standard drugs related to the targets of Cancer and bacterial infections were investigated using the molecular docking technique with AutoDock 4.2.6 software tool. Finally, the PRO TOX-II online tool was used to compare the toxicity (LD50) and molecular weight of these MONPs to standard drugs.

Results

According to the data obtained from the semi flexible molecular docking process, MgO and Fe2O3 NPs performed better than standard drugs in several cases. MONPs typically have a lower 50% lethal dose (LD50) and a higher molecular weight than standard drugs. MONPs have shown a minor difference in binding energy for different targets in three diseases, which probably can be attributed to the specific physicochemical and pharmacophoric properties of MONPs.

Conclusion

The toxicity of MONPs is one of the major challenges in the development of drugs based on them. According to the results of these molecular docking studies, MgO and Fe2O3 NPs had the highest efficiency among the investigated MONPs.

An ocean of possibilities: a review of marine organisms as sources of nanoparticles for cancer care

Seas and oceans have been explored for the last 70 years in search of new compounds that can support the battle against cancer. Marine polysaccharides can act as nanomaterials for medical applications and marine-derived bioactive compounds can be applied for the biosynthesis of metallic and nonmetallic nanoparticles. Nanooncology can be used in numerous fields including diagnostics, serving as drug carriers or acting as drugs. This review focuses on marine-derived nanoparticles with potential oncological applications. It classifies organisms used for nanoparticle production, explains the production process, presents different types of nanoparticles with prospective applications in oncology, describes the molecular pathways responsible for numerous nanomedicine applications, tags areas of nanoparticle implementation in oncology and speculates about future directions.