Green synthesis of Nerium oleander-conjugated gold nanoparticles and study of its in vitro anticancer activity on MCF-7 cell lines and catalytic activity

Abstract

The phytochemicals present in the stem bark extract of <i>Nerium oleander</i> (commonly known as Karabi) have been utilized for the green synthesis of stable gold-conjugated nanoparticles at room temperature under very mild conditions. The green synthesized gold-conjugated nanoparticles were characterized by surface plasmon resonance spectroscopy, High resolution transmission electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction studies and dynamic light scattering. A mechanism for the synthesis and stabilization of gold-conjugated nanoparticles (AuNPs) has been proposed. Anticancer activity of the stabilized AuNPs studied against MCF-7 breast cancer cell line revealed that the stabilized AuNPs were highly effective for the apoptosis of cancer cells selectively. The antioxidant activity of the stem bark extract of <i>Nerium oleander</i> has also been studied against a long lived 2,2-diphenylpicrylhydrazyl radical at room temperature. Moreover, the utilization of the stabilized AuNPs as a catalyst has also been demonstrated.