Antibacterial and antiproliferation activity of green synthesized nanoparticles from rhizome extract of Alpinia galangal (L.) Wild

Abstract

Iron-based nanoparticles were synthesized using aqueous extracts of Alpinia galangal rhizoid by the green combustion method. A. galanga is an important medicinal plant and it has more medicinal value. In this study, we aim to characterize the synthesized iron oxide (α-Fe2O3) and different mole percent of copper doped α-Fe2O3 nanoparticles (NPs) by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), Energy-dispersive X-ray (EDX), UV–visible (UV–vis), Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy and their biological activity. From the XRD, it was found that the size of the NPs was 20–60 nm and it is evident from TEM image. The UV–visible absorption peaked at 278, 435 and 550 nm were observed due to the ligand to metal charge transfer transitions double excitation of an Fe3+ pair. IR bands at ~ 535 and ~ 450 cm−1 were observed from FTIR spectra and is due to Fe–O vibrations. SEM results reveal the irregular spherical shape of the α-Fe2O3 and copper doped α-Fe2O3 NPs. There is no much variation in size and shape of the nanoparticles in between undoped and doped iron oxide. The antibacterial activity of synthesized undoped and copper doped α-Fe2O3 NPs was performed by a disc-diffusion and microtiter method against human pathogenic gram-negative and gram-positive bacteria. Maximum inhibition was observed against Serratia marcescens followed by Bacillus cereus in all samples. α-Fe2O3 NPs also exhibit anticancer activity against three human cancer cell lines like ovarian cancer cell line (SKOV3), metastatic breast cancer cell line (MDAMB-231), and colon cancer cell line (COLO-205). Significant antiproliferative activity was observed against ovarian cancer in MTT assay, induced cell cycle arrest, and cell death was noticed in SKOV3. The results revealed that undoped and copper doped α-Fe2O3 NPs have a wide range of antibacterial applications and also showed anticancer activity against ovarian cancer cell lines. This green synthesis approach is low-cost and eco-friendly and it can be applied in various fields. This indicates that the α-Fe2O3 NPs have the potential to serve as a green nano-oxide for pharmaceutical industries.