Green synthesis of cerium oxide nanoparticles using Falcaria Vulgaris leaf extract and its anti-tumoral effects in prostate cancer

Abstract

<title>Abstract</title> Over recent years, metal oxide nanoparticles have been extensively investigated due to their potential biomedical applications. This study aimed to describe a simple and eco-friendly method for the green synthesis of cerium oxide nanoparticles (CeO₂ NPs) using <italic>Falcaria vulgaris</italic> (<italic>F. vulgaris</italic>) leaf extract as a capping agent and to evaluate their anti-cancer effects on human prostate cancer cells (PC3). The phyto-synthesized CeO₂ NPs were characterized by UV–visible spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscope, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, scanning electron microscope, and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy. The UV-Visible spectrum showed a peak at 313 nm with a band gap energy of 3 eV. Microscopic results revealed that CeO₂ NPs mainly were spherical. In addition, the XRD pattern confirmed the crystalline structure of green synthesized CeO₂ NPs with an average crystalline size of around 19.5 nm. In biological experiments, the results of the resazurin assay indicated the significant cytotoxic activity of CeO₂ NPs against PC3 cells with an IC₅₀ at 113.6 μg/ mL. The real-time PCR results revealed that CeO₂ NPs effectively regulate PC3 cell proliferation, apoptosis, and migration by modifying the expression of cell cycle-related proteins (c-Myc, cyclin D1, p21), and apoptosis-related genes (Bcl-2 and Bax), and migration-related genes (MMP-2 and MMP-9). Overall, these findings suggest that the green fabricated CeO₂ NPs from <italic>F. Vulgaris</italic> can be used as a novel therapeutic agent for prostate cancer treatment.