Assessment of antioxidant, cytotoxic, anti-proliferative, and anti-bacterial activities using the bioinspired silver nanoparticles via Cucumis prophetarum fruit extract

Abstract

Cucumis prophetarum (Cp), a medicinal herb, is studied for various biological activities, including anti-cancer and anti-bacterial activities. In this study, we have done bioinspired synthesis of AgNPs using methanol extract of Cp fruit (fCp-AgNPs) and checked its biological activities. Physical characterization of fCp-AgNPs was done using different techniques like UV-Vis spectrophotometry, DLS, FITR, XRD, FESEM, and TEM. The antioxidant activity of fCp-AgNPs was checked by DPPH and ABTS assay. The fCp-AgNPs showed potent cytotoxicity and anti-proliferative activity against A549, MDA MB 231, and HepG2 with an IC₅₀ value of 97.4, 69.1, and 79.8 µg/mL, respectively. The anti-bacterial activity of fCp-AgNPs on Staphylococcus aureus, Streptococcus pneumonia, Salmonella typhi, and Pseudomonas aeruginosa was tested by disk diffusion assay. Hence, this study supports the effectiveness of the bioinspired fCp-AgNPs for the development of anti-cancer and anti-bacterial agents and can be explored more in pharmaceutical applications.

Graphical Abstract

Cucumis prophetarum, a medicinal herb, is used to synthesize silver nanoparticles. The 80% methanolic fruit extract if this plant is used for the bioinspired AgNPs (fCp-AgNPs). The various phytochemicals present in the extract are responsible for the reduction of Ag ions and forms silver nanoparticles from silver nitrate. Furthermore, the fCp-AgNPs are characterized using different techniques and checked for various biological activities

Keywords:

• Bioinspired AgNPs
• Cucumis prophetarum
• Cytotoxic activity
• Scratch assay
• Anti-bacterial activity

Acknowledgment

The authors would like to acknowledge the financial support received from the Department of Science and Technology (SERB/EEQ/2016/000696) and the University Grants Commission (UGC) for the Junior Research Fellowship. The authors would also like to acknowledge the Dr. M Bhanuchandra Department of Chemistry, Central University of Rajasthan, Ajmer, India, for guiding in GCMS analysis, Material Research Centre, Malviya National Institute of Technology, Jaipur for DLS, FTIR, FESEM, TEM, and SAED analysis.

Author contribution

Hemlata carried out all the experiments, analyzing data, interpreting results, and drafting the manuscript. Dr. Arvind Pratap Singh has provided the gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria, and Prem Raj Meena has guided in performing the anti-bacterial assay. Dr. Kiran Kumar Tejavath has formulated and supervised the work. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

Additional information

Funding

The authors would like to acknowledge the financial support received from the Department of Science and Technology (SERB/EEQ/2016/000696) and the University Grants Commission (UGC) for the Junior Research Fellowship. The authors would also like to acknowledge the Dr. M Bhanuchandra Department of Chemistry, Central University of Rajasthan, Ajmer, India, for guiding in GCMS analysis, Material Research Centre, Malviya National Institute of Technology, Jaipur for DLS, FTIR, FESEM, TEM, and SAED analysis.